Close Encounters
by SmallRozfan
Summary: This fic is set over the summer between seasons 2 and 3 when Clark, going by Kal due to his influence with red K, is running amok in Metropolis. During that time, he meets Lois.
1. Chapter 1 First Contact

**Close Encounters**

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing to do with Smallville, Superman, etc. Just borrowing the characters and story for a while to play with my imagination. I also own none of the songs I use/reference in this story. For fun, not for profit.

**Author:** Beth aka SmallRozfan

**Rating:** PG13 (but probably will be more towards the PG)

**Pairing:** Young CLois (naturally)

**Summary:** This fic is set over the summer between seasons 2 and 3 when Clark, going by Kal due to his influence with red K, is running amok in Metropolis. During that time, he meets Lois.

**A/N:** Yes, I know there have been several stories set during this time but I haven't read but maybe one of them. I wanted one that I felt would blend into the story of Smallville and give us a glimpse of what CLois would become. I hope I can do this justice and it feel like a possibility. It will only be three chapters, with a possible epilogue, but I expect them to be pretty long, especially for me. This first part was 20 pages in Word. Most of my chapters/parts are around 5 or 6. I was inspired by the song "You're Beautiful" by James Blunt. Played with the ages just slightly since Clark could drive, I went with the age 16 and since Lois is generally accepted as being a year older, she's 17 here, but only just. I went back and did research from the following episodes: Exodus (season 2), Exile (season 3), Nemesis (season 6), and Prototype (season 6).

**Lyrics for "You're Beautiful" by James Blunt** (Inspiration for the fic and for this first part. This is the clean version.)

My life is brilliant.

My life is brilliant.

My love is pure.

I saw an angel.

Of that I'm sure.

She smiled at me on the subway.

She was with another man,

But I won't lose no sleep on that

'Cause I got a plan.

You're beautiful. You're beautiful.

You're beautiful it's true.

I saw your face

In a crowded place,

And I don't know what to do

'Cause I'll never be with you.

Yeah, she caught my eye

As we walked on by.

She could see by my face that I was flying high.

And I don't think that I will see her again,

But we shared a moment that will last to the end.

You're beautiful. You're beautiful.

You're beautiful it's true.

I saw your face

In a crowded place,

And I don't know what to do

'Cause I'll never be with you.

You're beautiful. You're beautiful.

You're beautiful it's true.

There must be an angel with a smile on her face,

When she thought up that I should be with you.

But it's time to face the truth,

I will never be with you.

Chapter 1 – First Contact

If you ask them about the first time they met, he'll blush a deep crimson and she will smirk. She will give him a teasing smile and a nudge, waiting for him to begin. He'll clear his throat a couple of times and push his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Well, that's kind of a long story," he would stutter, trying to dissuade the topic from being visited.

"No, it's not. I was on my way to his home town where my cousin was living and it was storming…" she would begin.

"And we met there," he would interrupt, trying to leave out the embarrassing details…which of course she would relish in telling yet again.

Smoothly ignoring his interruption, she would pick up where she left off. "I was driving along and suddenly there was a big flash of lightning and I ran my car off the road into a corn field…"

He would sigh and call her name softly to ask her to stop there, but she always finishes the story the same way. "And there he was, naked as a jay bird (or "in his birthday suit", or "completely naked", or "in all his nude glory", or some other such line)." At your surprised and questioning look, she'll smile and say, "He was struck by lightning, you understand. Blew his clothes and his mind. Couldn't remember a _thing_ about himself…not even that he was one of the most modest people in the world." She'll laugh and he'll give an embarrassed chuckle.

If you ask them, that's how they'll tell you they met. But the truth is, Lois Lane and Clark Kent met almost two years earlier than that, in Metropolis. They just don't remember.

* * * * * * * * Flashback * * * * * * * *

**Metropolis, Evening, Early Summer 2003**

Clark jerked awake as the el (elevated train) came to an abrupt stop. Taking a deep breath and stretching, he looked at his watch. 9:35 pm. He had been riding for the past 6 hours, sleeping fitfully for at least 4 of them. Looking around, he caught the eye of a rather ripe-looking man standing across the car from him who could have been anywhere from 55 to 85, so hard was it to tell under all the dirt and grime. The man flashed a smile that spoke volumes of his life's dental care, or lack thereof. Clark raised an eyebrow and looked away, yawning.

As the car exchanged passengers, the runaway teen looked around, trying to decide whether to get off or not, but not really caring either way. The decision was taken out of his hands as he continued to stall and the train lurched forward yet again. Sitting back, he slouched and tried to make himself comfortable as a rattling racket came towards him.

The vagrant was making his way over, trying to maneuver a rickety shopping cart full of junk across the car to where Clark was sitting. As the man dropped heavily into a seat one over from Clark, the teen caught his breath at the stench coming off of him. His eyes watered and he slid as far over as he could get towards the window and away from the unwelcome companion.

"Hey!" the man said gruffly but warmly. "You gettin' off at the next stop?" When Clark shrugged noncommittally, he grunted. "I'll pay you a dolla' to help me get my cart off at the next stop." Clark's gaze went to his and he just raised an eyebrow, holding his breath at the smell. Chuckling the man said, "Ok, ok five dollas."

Shrugging, Clark stood as the train started to slow. "Sure, why not?"

Between the two of them, they were able to get the cart off the train, and Clark was just going to leave the vagrant there with his cart until he noticed that the man was pushing the cart towards the stairs and the escalator. Sighing audibly, the teen snatched up the cart and without breaking a sweat, carried it up the stairs, the owner trailing a long behind him, huffing and puffing all the way. At the top of the stairs, Clark let it drop to the ground carelessly, the contents rattling inside.

"Hey! Be careful with my stuff, boy! It may not look like much to you, but it's all I got, you show off."

Clark mumbled a halfhearted apology before turning to go on his way. His dirty companion grabbed hold of his sleeve before he could leave, but quickly removed his hand at the look that Clark gave him. Flashing him another toothless grin, the man held out a five dollar bill. "Donchya want your money?" As the teen reached for it however, the man drew his hand back and got out the other one for Clark to shake. "Name's Franklin Cooper, but everybody calls me 'Coop'."

"Well, _Coop_, thanks for the money," Clark replied with a smirk. Snatching the money out of the man's hand he stuffed it in his pocket and tried again to walk away, but again the man grabbed hold of his sleeve.

"Would you do me another favor, son?" When Clark tilted his head, the man continued. "Buy me a burger from that place across the street. I'd get it myself, but they won't let me in there anymore... they say I scare the kids."

Clark looked down at the man's hand that was outstretched and holding another two dollars. His parents' lifetime of training battled with the red K induced personality. He really just wanted to walk away, and he would have if he had had something better to do. But since he had no plans, and no real inclination to do anything else, he shrugged, took the money, and walked quickly across the street to the fast food place.

Less than 10 minutes later, he dropped the man's hamburger, fries and his change into his hand. "There! Is there _anything_ else?"

"You wanna sit over on that bench over there and eat with me?" He asked nodding at the bag of food in Clark's hand. "I hate to eat alone."

Clark came close to telling the older man to buzz off but he really didn't like eating alone either if he had a choice. So shrugging in answer, he made his way over to the bench Coop had indicated. Without looking to see if he had followed, the teen dug out his food and started eating. It had been a while since his last meal, Clark realized and the cheap fries were good and hot.

Chuckling, Coop struggled to talk around a mouth full of food. "Slow down, boy. Nobody's gonna take it away from you. You might actually wanna taste what yer eatin'." They ate in silence for a moment or two before Coop washed down a bite with a sip of soda. "You gotta name, son?"

Hesitating, Clark threw a glare at Coop. "Used to," he bit out begrudgingly.

"Huh!" Coop huffed with a slight indignant snort. "Well, no need to bite my head off! I was just tryin' to be neighborly!"

They again worked on their food in silence and Clark finished his as he tried to ignore his companion. Finally, he ground out, "You can call me 'Kal'."

"Well, _Kal_, you been in Metropolis long? Seem a little green to me," Coop told him with a grin.

The questions were starting to irritate Clark, but since he suspected that it was the kind of reaction that Coop was actually trying to get out of him, he shrugged, trying for nonchalance. "Not long. Maybe a couple of weeks." It had to have been no more than 10 or 11 days, but the teen saw no need to elaborate. In fact, the conversation was beginning to bore him.

Coop stood, supposedly to throw his trash in the waste bin but didn't retake his seat. Moving towards his cart, he nodded at Kal. "Well, the Y has a program where they'll let ya shower for free every other day and give a small breakfast between 5:30 and 7 in the mornin'. Ya might wanna take advantage of that, but they only let in a small number so you gotta get there early." At Clark's questioning look, the old man just grinned. "Yer startin' to smell, boy."

Clark was so surprised by the man's comment that he let out a short bark of laughter. Coop had started moving down the sidewalk, pushing his cart along with him. "Yeah, well, why don't you take your own advice, old man?" Clark called.

"Don't got anybody to watch my cart!" Coop called over his shoulder. "Welcome to Metropolis, Kal! Try not to get into too much trouble."

**A Few Nights Later**

**Fort Avelson Military Base outside Metropolis Proper**

Lois Lane unpacked her things while she waited for the line to be picked up on the other end of the phone. Finally, she heard a sleepy voice mumble, "'lo?"

"Hiya, Chlo!"

"Lois?" came the confused reply.

"Yup, it's me, your favorite cousin!" she chirped happily. Then she frowned. "Are you asleep already? Jeeze! What is country life doing to you?"

"I must have dozed off. I was working on an article…what time is it?" Chloe asked, sounding a little more awake. She yawned audibly and Lois heard some shuffling.

"It's about 2200 hours…" she grimaced to herself. "Sorry, that's 10 pm. Still plenty early to come out here and see me."

"See you? Lois, I thought you were somewhere in Europe. Where are you?"

"Au contraire, ma cousine," Lois answered in a perfect French accent. "I am currently unpacking mine and the General's junk at Fort Avelson."

Chloe squealed. "You're here? In Metropolis I mean? Why? When did you get in town? How long are you staying? Is Uncle Sam being stationed here?" she babbled happily. It had been ages since she'd seen Lois.

The older cousin laughed. "Chlo, slow down! Yes, I'm here in Metropolis. I got in town about an hour ago, I'm staying for the summer, and no, the General is not being stationed here…at least not permanently. He has some training classes he's being put in charge of for the summer and since he knew I'd want to see you, he graciously allowed me to come." Lois frowned at the pile of laundry that was on the floor.

"So what color is your hair now? Still Elvis black? Will I even recognize you?" Chloe asked.

"No, I haven't had that for ages now. I'm back to my natural dark brown for now," Lois told her, cradling the phone between her ear and her shoulder as she refolded some clothes to put them away. "But I've been seriously thinking of trying blond for a while, but I'm not sure yet."

"Blond? What color blond? Not platinum right?"

"Nah, nothing that drastic. Just a lighter brown with blond highlights on top of that…maybe a honey blonde," Lois said. "At least that's a semi-natural color. Dad blew a gasket when we got a picture of Lucy with cookie-monster blue hair."

"How is Lucy? Is she with you guys?"

Lois frowned and rolled her eyes at the thought of her younger sister, but tried to keep her tone light. "Nope. Another boarding school! This time in Switzerland." Not wanting to go down that road, she abruptly changed the subject. "But guess who I just found out is stationed here, at least temporarily?"

"Who?"

"Wes Keenan," Lois said softly in case the General came in unexpectedly.

Her tone, however, could not fool Chloe. "Wes? The Wes Keenan? As in the Wes Keenan…"

"Yes! The one and only," Lois interrupted quickly. Her cheeks grew hot at the thought of her friend.

She and Wes had met on this same base when she was only 12 and he was 15 going on 16. The General had asked Wes to keep an eye on her and while he resented it at first, he quickly came to realize that Lois was no ordinary 12 year old. They became good friends despite the age difference, but Lois had always had a crush on him. It almost broke her heart when he enlisted as soon as he turned 17 and was shipped out for training. Last year, they crossed paths again on a base in Germany. It was only for a weekend before she was again dragged off by the General to another base, but it had been enough for them to renew the friendship…and grow even closer. Now Lois couldn't wait to see him.

"Wow! You're just full of surprises, Lo! Have you seen him yet?" Chloe laughed.

"Not yet but…" There was a knock at the door and Lois quickly put her cousin on hold. "Yeah?" she yelled at the door.

"Lo, we have a visitor I think you should come out and meet," her father's voice gruffly called back.

She sighed. "Be right there!" She put the phone back to her ear and sighed again. "I gotta go, Chloe…been given my orders. What do you have going on tomorrow? You want to try and get together…have some fun?"

"Tomorrow! Omigod, Lo! I totally forgot! I shipped your present to the last address you gave me. It's supposed to be there tomorrow," Chloe cried.

Laughing, Lois rolled her eyes affectionately. "Don't sweat it, cuz. It'll get here, eventually. I don't really care about presents, it'd just be great to see you and celebrate the big day with you. You could show me around town, we could grab a bite to eat, you know whatever. I realize it's short notice but…"

"Lois Joanne Lane!" her father's voice boomed.

She grimaced before sputtering into the phone. "Really gotta go, Chlo. I'll call you first thing tomorrow."

Lois vaguely registered her cousin's goodbye before she hung up and flung the door open, hoping she looked presentable or the General would have her hide. She moved into the living room of the small apartment and glared at her father before the young man on the couch stood up and turned to face her. She froze in shock and then grinned and laughed, launching herself at the visitor. He caught her easily and returned her hug, lifting her off her feet and swinging her around as he chuckled.

"Wes!"

"I was beginning to wonder if you were coming out, Lo!" he teased before setting her back down on her feet. He set her away from him for a moment and looked her over, but kept his hands on her shoulders.

Lois flushed a little at his scrutiny but just grinned at him. "Man, it's good to see you!"

He laughed and chucked her under the chin. "It's good to see you too, squirt!" he told her.

"_Squirt?" Hadn't they moved past that childhood nickname for her? I mean with everything that happened in Germany… _When her smile dimmed a bit at his words, however, he just squeezed her shoulder ever so slightly with the hand that was still resting there. She searched his eyes and found a warm pleading there that made her smile brighten once more. Her eyes darted over him once and she appreciated the way his uniform looked on him.

"Found this young man wandering around by the mess hall," Sam told his daughter with a small smile. The warmth in his eyes, however, betrayed his gruff tone of his voice. "Since we hadn't eaten either and the kitchen was closed, I told him we would take pity on him and share our pizza."

Lois beamed at them both. "Great! It's not here yet, but I expect it to be any minute. Why don't we…" her voice trailed off as the doorbell rang. Wes' stomach growled as she moved to answer it and Lois laughed. "Guess we'd better hope that's the pizza now. Sounds like we've got a hungry bear in here!"

**Next Evening**

Kal smirked at the ease with which he had been able to get the food out of the vending machines. His stomach growled at the thought of the stash that was in his recently acquired knapsack, taken at super speed off a dummy in a store window display. As he popped the top of the soda in his hands, he glanced around for something to do, somewhere to go. Shrugging and without much thought to it, he headed back to the el.

Climbing on board, he was happy to see that it was pretty empty for this time of night, not that it was late but it was after rush hour. He dropped heavily into a seat by the window at the back of the car and slouched down. Pulling some cheese crackers and cream-filled cupcakes out of his bag, he sat back to eat and just watch the city roll by.

He didn't know why he seemed to find himself here night after night…well, not this specific train or this specific route, but on the el just the same. Maybe it was because he felt so restless. He had been riding the trains almost every night since he came to Metropolis. Maybe it helped him feel like he was going places. Because the truth is, he was sort of stuck in limbo. He didn't know where to go or what to do from here.

Clark Kent, for all intents and purposes, was dead. That life was over…he had made sure of it, hadn't he? So he couldn't go back to Smallville. The problem was that his new persona, this _Kal_, didn't exist either. He had no home, no family, no money, no friends, and no past. While it was getting easier to be this new person, he was also boring…so far.

The call of the red kryptonite to release his inner monsters was getting stronger as time went on. Kal was tired of sleeping on trains or in chairs in the back of the public library, and he was tired of showering every other day at the Y, if he made it in time to be allowed in, and he was tired of eating just the junk he could shake out of a vending machine. Not that the sugar and fat weren't giving him a real boost at times, but he wanted meat and potatoes again. The temptation to step up his game a bit was getting harder to ignore. He was lonely too, although he would never admit that to anyone.

Glancing up at the flashing sign that announced the next stop, he sighed. Stay on and sleep or get off and find something to do? He could go to the zoo again. It was no problem getting in, even after hours. As the train slowed, he picked up his bag but when the doors opened, quite a few people got on and he didn't feel like fighting them to get off. So sitting back in his seat, he again slouched down and passively glanced over the people that had gotten on.

Lois and Wes stood at the platform waiting for the train to come. When she pulled out a cigarette and put it in her mouth, he grimaced. "I thought you were going to quit that nasty habit!" he scolded her.

Rolling her eyes, she put the cigarette and lighter back in her purse and sighed. "So I haven't exactly quit, but I _have_ cut back. You should be proud of me for that."

Wes arched his right eyebrow, drawing attention to the scar just above his eye. "Lois, you know how bad it is for you. You of all people with your mom's history…"

Sighing again, Lois snapped at him. "I know, ok? I'll quit…I will." Choosing to be satisfied by that, Wes decided to drop it.

"I can't believe that Chloe had to go home. It's still early and I haven't seen her in such a long time," Lois complained, but then grimaced. "That sounds like I don't care that she has a headache. I do, and I hope she's ok, but I've missed her and I feel like we don't get to see each other near enough."

Wes gave her a smile. "LoJo, you've got all summer to visit with Chloe," he reminded her, using his pet name for her he had come up with before he had enlisted. "Plus we spent all day together. I think she might have just gotten dehydrated."

The three young people had spent the day at the zoo, looking at the exhibits, eating junk and having a great time. The General had business he had to attend to, but didn't want his daughter to spend her birthday stuck on the base. He had given his permission for her to go out on the town with Chloe, with the stipulation that Wes would accompany the young ladies, and that suited Lois just fine. Even though she was a little hurt that her father would miss yet another birthday due to his duties, quite frankly Lois preferred the way it had worked out…especially since he had given her cash to fund the evening.

Lois grinned at him. "True, and that also means that we get to spend the rest of the evening alone…just the two of us." She wiggled her eyebrows at him.

Wes' eyes darted down the tracks as he gave half a laugh. "Oh, look! Train's coming!"

There were others on the platform waiting for the train and everyone started moving closer to the edge, although there was really no rush. As the doors to the train opened, Lois and Wes moved to the side of the doors to let passengers off before boarding themselves. They had purposely chosen the back end of the train, hoping it would be less of a fight to get on and off. Choosing seats that were against the side of the train, they plopped down and waited for the train to start moving.

They looked around the car in silence for a few minutes. Noticing a sign across the way from them, Lois read it out loud. "Have you seen me? Clark Kent, missing May. We love and miss him. If you have any information, please call…That is so sad. His parents must be worried sick," she thought aloud. Then she took a deep breath and nudged her companion. "Not that you could tell much from _that_ picture, even if you'd want to help keep an eye out for him."

Wes looked to the poster and shook his head. "I think they tried to blow up an already bad picture. You can't even tell how old he is. He could be 12 or 20." Looking back at Lois, he noticed that she looked like she was about to say something he might not want to hear. "So where do you want to go? Are you hungry? We can get some food."

Biting the corner of her lip, she pulled a flyer out of her pocket, unfolded it, and handed it to him. "That's where I want to go, but we should probably eat first."

"Atlantis?" Wes read confused. Then as he kept reading his eyes shot to hers, wide with disbelief. "A night club? You want me to take you to a night club?"

Lois put on her best pleading and negotiating, but not whining, face. "Wes, look at the featured music list! I mean, here it is my birthday and they're playing the best of the 80s hair bands! It's like it was meant to be…like destiny!" she told him, pointing at the theme for the night at the club.

Wes took a deep breath, and Lois could see that he was thinking about it. It was the kind of thing they used to do all the time. Had he changed that much? Had he become too much like her father? "Your father would have me doing push-ups until my arms fell off and that would be after he had me run an obstacle course a million times and before he had me court-martialed!" he muttered.

She snorted. "Please, my father loves you and you know it." Lois decided to pull out the big guns, and considering what it was she was taking a chance of it possibly blowing up in her face. "And taking me to a night club would seem like small potatoes compared to what we did in Germany."

His eyes snapped to hers in fear and irritation. "You haven't told anyone about that, have you?" he hissed so that only she would hear him. "Lo, you know what it could mean for my career…to my life."

She put a little space between them and her face fell. "Wesley Keenan, you know I know better than that! That wasn't a threat, just a matter of fact."

"I'm sorry, LoJo. I didn't mean to snap at you. It's just…let's just forget it ok?" Wes told her, good humor restored. "Tell you what, we'll get something to eat and then we'll go and see if we can get in. I mean, with you being under…"

Flashing something in front of his face with a Cheshire cat grin, Lois interrupted with a gleeful giggle. "I knew you'd give in. So…I took the liberty of acquiring proper ID." She waved the fake license in front of his face and he tried to grab it twice before she let him catch it.

"Joanne Lone?" he read. "Where did you get this?"

Lois bit her lower lip and then shook her head. "Nope. Not going to squeal. You've become too much of a stick in the mud. Just know that I got it and, for old times' sake, we're going to go to that club and hear some _totally awesome_ music, drink until things get a little fuzzy, sneak back onto base and hope to heaven that we don't get caught out after curfew. So what do you say?" she asked with a grin.

Wes was folding; she could see it in his eyes, even though he was trying to hold his own in the stare down. Finally, he laughed and pulled her into a brief hug. "How could I say no to that face? You're cuter than a puppy," he teased.

Kal sat at the back of the train, the very last seat and nonchalantly glanced over the newcomers on the car. Quite a few had gotten on and he wondered vaguely where they were all going. The sound of the train lulled him into a trance-like state somewhere between asleep and awake.

He was abruptly snapped to attention by the mention of a name. _"Clark Kent, missing May…"_ he heard a female voice say. Kal's heart rate skyrocketed and his breathing turned into pants as he tried to see around the others on the car to the owner of the voice. He could only make out a slim, but somewhat tall young woman with dark brown hair. She was too tall to be Lana, plus the voice was definitely not hers. He would have known Lana's voice anywhere.

Forcing himself to focus, he listened to the female and her companion. _"His parents must be worried sick…Not that you can tell much from that picture, even if you'd want to help keep an eye out for him."_ Kal frowned but relaxed as he noticed the poster on the other side of the train. It was one of those 'missing persons' flyers and they were always bad. _"He could be 12 or 20,"_ he heard her companion say. But his mind kept going over what she had said about his parents. Could they possibly be worried about him? Could they be missing him? He absently played with the ring on his right hand and immediately felt better and dismissed the idea, forcibly putting it from his mind.

Tuning back into the conversation further up the car, he heard that they had changed subjects and apparently she was talking him into taking her to a night club. That sounded like fun for a change. Atlantis? He'd need to figure out a way to get in. He needed more information about where the club was. Then he'd need different clothes and money. Making a decision, Kal stood and moved closer to the front of the car, slinging his pack over a shoulder.

Lois laughed delightedly at Wes' surrender to her plan. "Ok, so we need to get off…" she studied the flyer for the club and found which station to get off the train. "Two more stops. We should be able to find someplace to eat near the club."

"If we're going into a night club, I'd like to change out of this uniform. I don't want to draw any more attention to us than we have to," Wes told her. "It was great to get us into the zoo half price but…"

"Ok, so we'll find a mega-mart or someplace where we can get you some jeans and a t-shirt or something. No problem," Lois said amiably. She looked out of the windows as the train started to slow for another stop. Sighing a little, she tilted her head as she studied the city. "I could see myself living in a city like Metropolis. I mean, I know I get to see a lot of pretty fabulous places, and have only really lived on military bases, but there's something about this city, New York, Gotham…I don't know, they have a pull on me, like this is where I see myself in the future."

Wes grinned and played along. "Ok, hot shot city woman, what would your life be like if you lived here? What do you see in your future?"

Returning his grin, her eyes twinkled. "Well, I'd have a fabulous apartment, naturally, probably in some high rise with spectacular views…ultra-modern or a renovated older building. Wouldn't really need a car with all the public transportation, but who knows. I'd have a swanky wardrobe of course…"

Wes chuckled. "And what, pray tell, are you going to do career-wise to afford all this lavish living?" he teasingly asked.

Lois took it seriously, however, pursed her lips and squinted her eyes in thought. Then she shook her head in frustration after a moment or two. "I don't know." She sighed and looked at him and shrugged. "The General tells me that's my problem…no direction. I have no idea what I want to do. I can't really see myself chained to a desk job day after day."

Taking her hand in his, Wes decided he had asked the wrong question. He had only been teasing and trying to play along in her fictional world, but instead he had made her turn too serious for what was supposed to be a fun night out. "I'm sorry, LoJo. I didn't mean to take the fun out of your fantasy. I was just trying to picture all the details and learn more about what direction you saw yourself headed in. It's been a while since we really got to talk."

"It's ok. I just really don't know what I might end up doing. I know the General would love for me to enlist, but…"

"Did he tell you that?" Wes asked, surprised.

"Not exactly. Why?"

Wes shrugged. "It's just that I get the impression that he'd rather you not get into the military. He said something once about hoping you could learn discipline another way. I assumed he meant that he wanted you to stay out of the military." He thought for a minute and then said, "I can see you in some kind of jet setting job, though. I'd say flight attendant but you wouldn't put up with people always demanding things of you." He laughed, trying to lighten the atmosphere again. "Maybe a PR job or marketing."

Lois laughed and stood up as the train slowed for their stop. "Well, I hope I have a little time to think about it. I don't have to decide anything tonight. Let's just drop it and have some fun." She nudged his shoulder playfully. "And remember it's Jo or Joanne now."

They made their way toward the doors and a young man with dark hair and a knapsack over one shoulder moved to stand behind them to get off. Lois' eyes wandered over him appreciatively and her hazel eyes caught his blue ones for a moment. He was cute and she flashed a friendly smile. The one he returned was flirtatious, but before Lois could react in any way, Wes had taken her hand and pulled her off the train with him.

It seemed that this was a busy stop because suddenly there were people everywhere and Lois lost the dark haired man in the crowd. She glanced around for him and as people parted, she got a glimpse of him standing down the platform a ways. He was facing their direction and their eyes met again. Smiling one last time at him and he at her, someone walked between them and suddenly he was gone.

Wes lightly shook the arm attached to the hand he was holding. When she glanced back at her companion, Lois smiled. "Everything ok?" he asked her.

"Sure. Let's go."

Kal watched from behind a column as the young couple left the area of the train platforms. What was it about her? Something that just pulled him, ever so slightly. Maybe it was just that she had caught his attention by calling out his name without even knowing who he was. Maybe it was that her idea finally gave him something to do. Maybe it was the cute way she had talked about living in the city that made him picture it all. He couldn't say but he wanted to see her again.

He had finally stopped listening to their conversation after she talked about living in a big apartment and having a 'swanky' wardrobe, feeling like he might overhear things he didn't want to when he saw her companion grin at her imaginings. Kal had learned the man she was with was military by the uniform and what he had said about finding civilian clothes. That could complicate things because he wanted nothing to do with the military.

Using his super speed, Kal left the train station and breezed through the city. New clothes weren't a problem. He just blew through an open mall, taking a pair of jeans, black boots, a black t-shirt, a button up dark blue shirt he wore like a jacket and, after picking up his black leather jacket from where he had his things stashed, his wardrobe was complete. Now was the problem of cash and getting into the club. The first might help him with the latter, if he had enough to flash around.

Facing what to Clark Kent would be an obstacle, Kal closed his eyes and let the red kryptonite's effects wash over him a little more. Opening his eyes, they glowed red for a moment before he sped off to a nearby ATM. Using his heat vision, he took out the camera and then approached and broke into the machine, pulling out all the contents and stuffing them in his bag. There was a brief twinge to his conscience but it passed quickly and was easily forgotten.

Kal turned from the ATM, slung the bag back onto his shoulder, and looked around before super speeding away. Stopping around the corner, he let the thrill of having gotten away with his crime wash over him. He grinned to himself. Step one, complete.

Lois looked around the club and drank the music in. It wasn't any problem getting in once they made it through the line. Flash a little cash, wear an attitude, and be a good-looking guy's arm candy and you were in. It was a pretty hopping place and Wes shouted a little over all the noise. "Where do you want to go?"

Holding onto his arm, she nodded in the direction of the bar. "Let's get a couple of drinks," she shouted.

Wes hesitated for a minute, looking a little uncertain before finally nodding and pulling her along behind him. They had downed a couple of shots of tequila, and Lois was starting to relax a little. "So your tour of duty must be almost up by now. You got any plans for the future?" she asked her companion.

"Well, actually, I just re-enlisted…with the marines," he confessed before downing another shot. Wes didn't meet her eyes.

"The marines! Really?" she asked in disbelief. "Why not stay with the air force if you're staying military?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just want to try something new."

"Why don't you get a job? Try the civilian life? You know, stay out and get a girlfriend," she suggested raising her eyebrows. She was hoping that when he finished his tour, he would want to settle down somewhere and maybe she could eventually…

Wes hesitated, knowing where Lois was going with this. Ever since Germany, he had been worried about their relationship status. He should never have slept with her. She was 16, for Pete's sake! Even though Lois had never seemed as young as her years, she _was_ young…too young. He loved Lois and hoped they could stay friends, but Wes just didn't see them in a future together.

Before he could say anything, however, she jumped up off the stool. "Oh! I love this song! Come on, let's dance!" she said, pulling him out onto the dance floor.

Kal pulled up to the front of the club Atlantis on his Kawasaki Vulcan, engine rattling the building, and everyone turned their eyes to him. He threw his key at the valet who was practically drooling at the motorcycle. "Why don't you take it for a spin while I'm inside?" Kal suggested to him.

The valet's eyes flew to his. "Really? You'd be cool with that?"

Shrugging, Kal smiled a little. "Sure. Live a little." He walked up to the bouncer at the door and held out a hand that cradled a Ben Franklin ($100). "Hey, man! How are you? Been a long time since Kal came by, huh?" he said.

The bouncer smiled as he clapped his hand to Kal's, picking up quickly. "Yeah, Kal, long time no see! You doin' alright?"

"Can't complain. What's the atmosphere tonight?"

"Red hot, watch out you don't get burned in there!" the bouncer laughed. "Lots of ladies hoping to find a partner…for the dance floor." When Kal smirked at him and held up another $20, he decided he liked this dude. "And if there's anything else I can do for you, Kal, just let ole Viper know."

"Thanks, Viper. I really appreciate that," Kal answered before making his way inside. His heart thumped with the music as he looked around. There were a lot of people in there, making it pretty warm. He scanned the people in the immediate vicinity before making his way over towards the bar.

"Hey, there, handsome! You wanna dance?" a petite red-head asked him, stepping in his path, and placing a hand on his chest.

Pulling her hand off of his chest, Kal gave her a small smile. "Maybe later. Right now, I'm thirsty."

She flashed him a flirty smile. "Mind if I join you?"

"Why don't you go out and dance and I'll watch you for a while," Kal told her. "Right now, I'm just not in the mood for company."

Trying again, the red-head moved closer and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Really? Pretty strange place to be if you aren't in the mood for company."

He disentangled himself from her and pushed her arms to her side. "Beat it!" he told her forcefully. Without a second glance, he made his way to the bar. He didn't even flinch at the name she threw at his back.

"Hey, man, what ya drinking?" the young bartender asked.

After placing his order, Kal looked around, scanning the crowd but he didn't see her or her companion anywhere. He turned slightly to reach for his drink and the crowd parted and it was as if everything slowed down. He saw her on the dance floor with the man from the train. She was wearing different clothes: a black, v-neck halter top, a short red skirt, sexy high heeled shoes, and big gold hoops in her ears and a gold chain belt loose around her waist. Her dark waves were piled up on her head in an attractive manner and Kal felt the pull to be near her intensify. He had never reacted to anyone this way, not even Lana. He didn't even notice what her military companion had changed into.

The song ended and as another one began, the man with her whispered something into her ear. She nodded and he moved to leave the dance floor, probably in search of the men's room. Kal saw his chance as another song started to play and the young woman started to move to the music herself. This was someone who knew who she was and was comfortable in her own skin.

He knew he probably shouldn't go over to her but he suddenly found he couldn't help himself. He had to talk to her, dance with her. As she gyrated on the floor to a song by Whitesnake, Kal grinned to himself. She was really digging the music. He stopped in front of her and she stopped for a moment when she glanced up and found him standing there. She look startled but then smiled.

"Hi! Mind if I dance with you?" Kal shouted.

"Sure!" she yelled back.

"You look like you're really into this song," he said after a minute.

(To see/hear the song they were dancing to, here is the link on YouTube to Give Me All Your Love: .com/watch?v=KjgD1HIVFC4&ob=av2e )

"I love Whitesnake! They have to be one of, if not THE best band ever!" she yelled at him.

She wasn't really dancing with him as much as next to him but Kal got a real kick out of her. He found himself wanting to watch her dance all night and hoping her friend didn't come back. "You here alone?" he asked but when she looked a little wary at him, he rushed to correct himself. "I just meant, I thought I saw you with someone earlier. He won't be mad because we're dancing will he?"

Recognition dawned on Lois and she started to feel a little uncomfortable. "You're the guy from the train earlier tonight. Are you following me?" she demanded, dancing forgotten and her hands on her hips.

He grinned at her. "How could I be following you? I saw you on the train hours ago. It must have just been fate that we both ended up here."

She snorted at that and rolled her eyes, feeling a little more at ease. "You don't really believe in destiny or fate or any of that crap do you?" she asked.

Without thinking about it, Kal rubbed his chest with one hand. "I don't know. What else would you call two people seeing each other on a train running into each other at a dance club two hours later in a big city like Metropolis?" he replied lightly.

"A weird coincidence," Lois stated. He just grinned wider.

The song ended and Lois fanned herself. "Whew! It's hot in here! Wanna get a drink at the bar?" she asked.

Extending his arm for her to take the lead, Kal nodded his head in the direction of the bar. "Lead the way, beautiful."

Lois grinned at him before moving across the room and perching on one of the stools. "White Russian!" she yelled to the bartender as another song boomed over the sound system.

Kal just asked for a beer before swiveling to face her, propping an arm on the bar. "I'm Kal," he told her with a self-confident air.

"Kal? That's an interesting name. I'm Jo," Lois told him, using the name on her ID.

He gave her a slow smile. "Jo? What's it short for? Joanne? Josephine?"

Lois' cheeks burned a little but she lifted her chin slightly. She really wasn't crazy about her middle name. She sometimes taunted the General that he had wanted to name her after GI Joe, but she knew she was named after her mother's favorite great aunt. "Joanne, but you can just call me Jo."

"So, Jo, what brings you to Metropolis? Or are you from here?" Kal asked, trying to get to know her a little better. He loved her voice. It had just a little bit of a rasp and he fleetingly wondered if she smoked.

Deciding that she liked talking to Kal and pretending to be someone else, Lois knew that the best way to keep up a pretense was to keep it as simple and as close to the truth as possible. "Business," she answered briefly. She leaned over the bar and shouted at the man behind it. "Hey! Where can I go to smoke here?"

"Back room!" he shouted back, waving in the general direction of his right. "It's marked."

"Thanks!" She turned back to Kal. "I'm dying for a cigarette but my friend doesn't approve. While he's off to the men's room, I'd better take advantage. Wanna come?"

"Sure," Kal answered with a nod.

He followed her to the smoking area and when they went inside, there were only a couple of other people spread around the big room. There were great speakers pumping the music into the room but not at the ear splitting decibels of out on the dance floor. Lois took a seat on a nearby plastic chair and Kal took the one across from her.

She pulled out her lighter and her pack of cigarettes. Holding it out to him, she offered to share but he shook his head. Tilting her head, she gave him a questioning smile. "If you don't smoke, why come to the smoking room with me?" she asked. He just raised one eyebrow and gave her a flirty smile. She grinned back at him and sat back.

"So what's your story, Kal?" she asked him, pulling out her cigarette and lighting it.

He shrugged. "Not a very interesting one, really," he answered vaguely.

She took a couple of puffs of the smoke and let its calming effects wash over her. Studying him as best she could in the dim lighting, she decided that he was really quite handsome. She couldn't make out the color of his eyes and the lighting made it difficult to try to determine his age. "Got a family? A girlfriend?"

"Nope. Neither." Leaning forward a little, he rested his forearms on his thighs and studied her. "Your friend is right you know." When she raised a questioning eyebrow, he grinned at her. "You really shouldn't smoke. It's terrible for you."

Rolling her eyes at him, Lois took another long drag on her cigarette. "Don't start on me. I know it's bad for me. I'm going to quit; it's just not going to happen tonight."

Kal nodded in acceptance and let the subject drop, not wanting her to get mad and end their conversation. "How about you? That guy you're with tonight? He a brother or a boyfriend?"

"Neither really. He's a friend I've known for a while, but really that's it." Now why didn't she say Wes was her boyfriend? She had had her sights set on him for years now but suddenly, she didn't want Kal to know that. Maybe it was the fact that if anyone ever found out that she had slept with Wes, his career would be over. Yeah, maybe she was protecting him.

"Nice of him to bring you here."

"Yeah, well, it's kind of my birthday present," Lois answered without thinking it through.

"It's your birthday? How old are you?" Kal asked.

Lois swore to herself silently. _'Good going, Lo! Now you've stuck your foot in it!'_ She smiled at him teasingly. "A year older than last year. You should know better than to ask a lady her weight or her age."

He grinned and leaned closer, their bodies almost touching. "You're right. That was ungentlemanly of me. Happy birthday…I wish I had a present for you."

She laughed. "How could you have known you'd end up chatting with the birthday girl? You are keeping me company and you danced with me. That's enough."

Squinting in thought, he tilted his head for a moment. "If you could have anything right this minute, what would it be? Call it a birthday wish. What would you wish for?"

Lois took another drag of her cigarette and thought about his question. After a minute, she shrugged. "I guess I really don't need anything. I'm pretty content with my life right now." Then she laughed. "I also hate to clean so I'm not much for knickknacks and a bunch of junk around the house."

"I guess I'm just going to have to grant you a future wish then."

"A future wish? And how can you do that?" she asked, playing along.

"Close your eyes," Kal told her, his voice somewhat huskier.

She gave him a skeptical look before doing as he said. "Ok, now what?"

"Now think of anything you might wish for in the future…anything at all, money, trips, cars, houses…love…" Kal told her softly and she shivered at the feel of his breath on her ear.

Suddenly, Lois felt his lips on hers. The kiss was gentle but firm, chaste but made her heart race…and over far more quickly than she would have liked if she was honest. She felt him sit back and her eyes fluttered back open. Kal was smirking at her. She felt her cheeks burn but didn't look away and simply raised an eyebrow at him.

He laughed at her expression. "That's how you grant a future wish." Just to keep her on her toes, he abruptly changed the subject. "You like 80's music?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"Love the big 80s hair bands! Best music ever made," she answered after a beat, her tone challenging him to disagree with her. She was determined not to be bested by the stranger. He just chuckled and Lois was thankful for the dim lighting as she felt her blush deepen and she looked away, suddenly self-conscious.

Lois was almost done with her cigarette. "So, Kal, are you from Metropolis?" she asked.

"Not exactly," he answered vaguely. "Been here only a few weeks. But I like it here. How about you? You said you were in town on business. What do you do?"

Why did he keep doing that? Every time she asked him a question about himself, he answered briefly and vaguely and then switched it around to ask about her. Her entire upbringing and training from her father told her that this should be a red flag, but her heart and instincts were telling her that this was someone she wanted to know better…someone she wanted to be close to.

Before she could reply, the door to the room opened and a frantic looking Wes Keenan stormed through it. "There you are! You about gave me a heart attack, do you know that?" he scolded Lois.

She was just grateful that he didn't use her real name and his attitude was starting to grate on her nerves. "I _can _take care of myself, Wes. I didn't ask you to bring me here as a babysitter. We were coming here as friends…for old times' sake, remember?"

He looked Kal over and then turned back to her. "Yeah, but maybe you do need one. We need to go. It's getting late."

Lois knew an order when she heard one and she scowled at him briefly. But then Kal stood up and moved to stand in front of Wes. "Maybe the lady would like to stay," he said gruffly.

Putting out what was left of her cigarette in an ashtray, Lois quickly moved to stand between the men. Wes was a well-trained military officer and Kal had no idea what he would be getting into if he picked a fight with him. Apparently, though, she had moved a little too quickly and the alcohol was taking a toll on her senses. She swayed a little and both men put out a hand to support her, glaring at each other before turning their attention back to her.

"Jo, you ok?" Kal asked in concern.

She smiled at him, and pulling her other arm out of Wes' grasp, placed her hand lightly on his chest. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just stood up a little too fast, that's all. Listen, Kal, it's been nice chatting with you but Wes is right about one thing. It is getting late and we should probably get going." If she was caught by the General coming in late or having been drinking, she would be placed under house arrest for who knew how long. She patted his chest lightly and then pulled away from him. "Maybe we'll bump into each other again sometime."

Kal's eyes met hers and she hoped that in the darkened room he would see her plead for them to see each other again. He seemed to study them for a moment before smiling at her. "Yeah, that'd be nice."

Lois allowed Wes to pull her towards the door before she heard Kal's voice add, "See you around, Jo." She flashed a smile over her shoulder and then left with Wes.

As soon as they were outside, Wes started in on her. "What were you thinking? Sneaking off to a dark room with a strange man at a club? Do you have any idea what kind of danger you could have been in?"

Lois stopped dead in her tracks and her fists went to her hips. "Wesley Keenan! You are not my father or my brother, so I'll thank you to stop acting like it. When did you become such a fuddy duddy? You used to be a lot of fun, even up to last year. What the hell happened to you? Besides, you know that I can take care of myself. The General may not have done everything right in raising me, but he did know the importance of his girls knowing self-defense."

She started to storm ahead of him but her step faltered a little from the high heels, her anger, and the alcohol. Lois wasn't really drunk but sufficiently tipsy to have a pretty significant headache tomorrow if she didn't drink about a gallon of water. As she twisted an ankle, Wes' reflexes were swift as he reached out and caught her, one arm wrapping around her waist from the front and the other around her shoulders at the back.

His eyes met hers and she saw the apologetic expression in them. "I'm sorry, Lo, but when I couldn't find you in that club…" his voice trailed off and her heart started racing at his proximity.

She seemed to recall a similar feeling with him a year ago in Germany, and she swallowed hard at the memory. She was sure he was going to kiss her and she wasn't sure if she wanted him to or not. For some reason, Kal's face, somewhat hidden in shadow, flashed in her mind and she felt a little guilty but didn't know why. She had had feelings for Wes for years, so why was it that now that she was in his arms, she was thinking about someone else. Was her guilt over that or about being in Wes' arms in the first place?

"LoJo, I'm responsible for you, whether you like it or not and your dad would kill me if he knew anything about this evening…but especially about that guy having you in that back room," he told her quietly, trying to make her see that he cared what happened to her.

But his answer wasn't the one she had expected to hear and she pulled herself out of his arms and straightened her clothes. Lois suddenly had the urge to cry, and swallowed hard, looking down at her skirt for a moment as she brushed off an imaginary piece of lint. "Let's go, Wes," she told him flatly.

"Lois?" he asked, confused.

She shook her head and started walking slowly, but surely, toward the train station. "Let's just get back to the base. I'm suddenly very tired."


	2. Chapter 2 Abduction

**Close Encounters**

A/N: Thank you all so much for your feedback and for taking the time to try out this story. For those who are reading this and haven't left a note, I hope you will at some point in the future.

I wanted to take a minute to tell you about lines in the show that intrigued me and inspired me in writing this fic. There were certain lines in "Exile" that made me just think it would fit. When the bartender asks, "What's the deal, Kal? Every night you roll in here with a babe and you always leave empty handed. What are you a monk or something?" Clark responds, "What's the point of starting something if it's just going to end badly?"

Then Chloe had a couple of lines that caught my attention. One was when she told Lana that she needed to move on because Clark "obviously has". Then she told her that she found him 2 months prior when some friends snuck her into "this club" and she followed him back to his apartment. He threatens Chloe that he'll disappear so no one can find him if she tells anyone about where he is. Why was he sticking around Metropolis in the first place?

Last was Pete, Martha and Jonathan talking about how his crimes and everything was getting worse the longer he was exposed to the red kryptonite. Him calling home but not saying anything. So many little things that I just wanted to fill in with this and see what I could do about putting Lois in the middle of it all. I hope it will blend as seamlessly as I want it to.

Oh yeah, I'm playing with time again in that I'm using music that wasn't released until after 2003. Just couldn't help myself. I love the song I used!

Chapter 2 – Abduction

Over the next couple of weeks, Lois tried to keep her distance from Wes without _looking_ like she was keeping her distance from him. She needed to clear her head and get some things straight. Being confined to the base by a mild cold and then by her father after a particularly heated argument gave her time to do just that. Looking back on that night at the club, she forced herself to face some hard truths.

One, Wes was right about the General having placed her in his care and she had treated that lightly, even knowing that Wes most definitely would not. Besides the fact that her father was his superior in rank, never mind that they weren't in the same branch of the military, Wes also had a special relationship with her father that was based on genuine mutual respect. While at times she had been jealous of that relationship, she would hate to be responsible for any breach in it. There were few people that the General openly liked and cared about. Wes was one of them and she wanted it to remain that way.

Two, Wes was also right about her being lax with her own personal safety when it came to Kal. Yes, the General had taught her to take care of herself, but disappearing into a dark room with a total stranger, one probably old enough to drink considering that he had been, was not smart…especially with no one knowing where she was. She had been drinking, it was dark in the club, and the only person who even knew who she really was had been nowhere around and had no idea where she had gone. It wasn't the smartest situation that she had put herself into, and it could have ended up a lot worse.

Admitting that, however, led to another admission…she had been wildly attracted to Kal and if she was honest with herself, she might be tempted to disappear into a dark room with him again. Despite the fact that he was a stranger and had obviously been flirting with her, _and_ Lois had learned quickly what was on the minds of young men most of the time, Lois had felt safe with him. She kept trying to give herself a good talking to because she shouldn't have felt that way. Worse, she shouldn't _still_ see him that way. But the truth was Lois wanted to see Kal again, and with every day that went by she felt the urge get stronger. She tried to tell herself that she was just curious to see if she would still feel the same way about him if she saw him again. Maybe once she saw him again, she'd realize that it had been just a fluke and she could clear her head of him once and for all.

The fourth admission she was forced to see was that her relationship with Wes had changed, probably forever. What she _didn't_ know was _how_ her relationship with him had changed. In the span of a few short years, Wes Keenan had gone from babysitter to friend to lover, and despite their age difference, she had resented the first, adored the second, and had built a fantasy life around the third. The age gap of four years had never bothered her, and she had thought that after the initial meeting and resentment of having been assigned to babysit her, that it no longer bothered him either.

She had secretly hoped after their tryst in Germany, that their lives would be forever intertwined. She had pictured Wes settling down somewhere after he got out of the military, working in some job or another, waiting on her to turn 18. Lois had seen herself moving to wherever he was and going to college. They would get married, have a family, and live happily ever after... madly in love.

Wes's announcement that he had reenlisted, with the _Marines_ no less, had quickly burst her bubble of that fictional world, forcing Lois to take a critical look at the facts of their relationship, versus the emotional dream. She was embarrassed to realize that she had been acting like an infatuated teenager... which is exactly what she was. While Lois had never been a typical kid, there were some stages that she seemed unable to skip over, and her first taste of love was no exception. She knew her feelings were real; she just didn't know what those feelings exactly were.

Lois realized that much of her fantasy had stemmed from the fact that ever since Wes had taken her virginity, he had not avoided her, chatting with her occasionally on the phone, and always answering her e-mails. She had taken that as a sign that he really cared about her. But the truth was he was only treating her the way he had always treated her... well, with the exception of the paranoia that her father would find out what they had done. She just didn't know whether that meant that he always cared for her or if he regretted what happened and was trying to tell her by his actions that he only wanted to stay friends. And since her thoughts were constantly filled with Kal lately, she wondered if that imaginary life was something that _she_ still wanted.

Chloe had been on the base a couple of times in the last two weeks and they had spent time just catching up. Lois had missed her cousin, and even though they spoke on the phone or via email on a regular basis, there was no substitute for face to face contact. She noticed that her younger cousin had avoided the subject of the farm boy she had had a crush on for several years. Knowing that Chloe would open up about him when she was ready, Lois let it slide. Inevitably, their conversation strayed to the night of the club one evening while the General was in meetings and they were sharing delivered Chinese. It had been three weeks since that night.

"So I haven't seen Wes around the few times I've been over here," Chloe observed after swallowing a mouthful of sweet and sour chicken. "And you haven't told me what happened after I left you two that night after we went to the zoo." She raised her eyebrows and grinned at her dark haired cousin.

Lois rolled her eyes and sighed. "Yeah, _so_ not what you're thinking at the moment. We went for dinner and I talked Wes into taking me to a dance club that was having an 80s music theme night. We kind of got into an argument, he brought me home and I haven't talked to him since, at least not really talked to him," she summarized.

Chloe frowned and sat forward a little. "What do you mean you got into an argument? What happened?" she asked.

"Wes was acting like a worried old woman, at first not wanting to take me to the club at all, then going all postal on me when I went to the back room to have a cig…to get some air," she quickly corrected, knowing that Chloe was just as against her smoking as Wes was.

But Chloe saw through her and gave her an exasperated look. "A cigarette? Lois, you promised!"

Lois held up her hands, careful not to drop her chopsticks in her right hand, in surrender. "Ok, ok! I know I shouldn't be smoking but it's a little harder to stop than I thought…but I _am_ working on it! Now could we please just drop it and get back to the subject at hand!"

Chloe threw her one more frown before sighing and shaking her head. "Ok, I'll let it go…for now. But why would you going into that back area make Wes mad or whatever? I don't get it."

Sighing, Lois decided to come clean. "Ok, I wasn't going to tell you this part but while Wes visited the facilities, I was on the dance floor and met this guy. He bought me a drink and went to the smoking room with me. Wes found us there."

Chloe's eyes were bugging out of her head. "Lois! You went into a back room with a strange guy after he bought you a drink? What were you thinking? What if he had spiked it with something?"

"What? No, Chloe, we were sitting at the bar when he bought it for me. I watched the bartender mix it and hand it straight to me. Then I told him I needed a smoke and he went with me and we just talked. There were other people in the room. I'm not stupid…I can take care of myself," Lois explained, finishing off her shrimp fried rice.

Frowning again, Chloe looked like she was missing something. "So what were you and this guy doing when Wes found you?"

"Just chatting and I was finishing my cigarette."

"I don't get it. Why would he be mad at you for that?" Chloe asked.

"Thank you! I have no idea!" Lois said, throwing out a hand to show she agreed with Chloe. "The only thing was that he said he had been worried when he couldn't find me and that…" She swallowed and blew out a breath. "And that the General had put him in charge of watching over me for the night. I'm 17, Chlo, and I need a babysitter?"

"Well, I can see how he might have freaked a little if your dad was holding him accountable for you. I mean, Uncle Sam can intimidate almost everybody. You and Lucy are the only two I know of that don't quake in their boots when he raises that one eyebrow." Chloe shuddered a little at the mental image of her uncle. "Maybe Wes was jealous," she offered.

Lois stared over her head, thinking about the whole situation. That didn't sound right and with the way Wes had been acting the rest of that night, even before the club…She shook her head and shrugged. "I don't know. I don't want to talk about Wes anymore. So what do you want to do tonight?"

Chloe laughed. "Oh no, you don't! Don't think I was going to let you get off that easily. You still have to tell me about this mystery man, and how you got into the club in the first place! So spill!"

Lois grinned at her younger cousin. "Well, the getting in part was easy. Fake ID, provided by a friend of mine's brother here on base. As for the mystery man, well, there's not much to tell. I didn't get a lot of time to chat with him before Wes found us."

"What did he look like?" Chloe asked, curious.

Shrugging, Lois felt her face warm and she busied herself putting all the take-out cartons together to throw them away. "Not entirely sure. The club was pretty dark. I know he's tall, well-built, dark hair."

Chloe observed her cousin and then let out a hoot. "You like this guy! Lois! You talked to him for what, maybe fifteen or twenty minutes? Can't really describe him, but you're blushing, so he obviously got to you." When Lois just threw her a glare but her blush deepened, Chloe laughed. "So maybe that's what the argument with Wes was about. He probably noticed that you liked this guy and was jealous."

Getting up, Lois started to clean up their dinner remains. "I don't think that's it, Chlo." Taking a big breath, she turned and faced her cousin. "Chloe, Wes reenlisted…with the Marines."

Her smile falling, Chloe got up from the couch and went over to hug her cousin. "Oh, Lo, I'm sorry. I know you've liked him for a while but…" She knew that Wes meant more to Lois than she had ever said aloud.

Lois cut her off, pulling away and waving her comments away. "Let's let it drop, Chlo. I'm dealing with it. Besides, as all the guys I ever go out with, including Wes, tell me, 'Distance is good for the relationship.'" She shrugged, jamming her hands in her pockets after disposing of the garbage. "So we'll either end up together or we won't. I'll deal with it either way. So what do you say to some fun tonight?"

Chloe groaned. "Lois, I'm not playing poker with you again. I still owe you five bucks from the other night and I'm not in the mood to lose my next paycheck."

Grinning evilly, Lois did a little dance. "Yeah, well, you should know better. I've played with some pretty heavy card sharks. But that's not exactly what I had in mind. I'd like to meet your friends from the Daily Planet. Maybe we could meet them for coffee or whatever," Lois suggested. At her cousin's skeptical look, Lois pleaded with her. "Please, Chlo, I've gotta get out of this house. I've been stuck on base for weeks now and I'm going stir crazy. The General is out on some special duty until at least tomorrow night."

Laughing, Chloe shook her head. "Ok, let me make some phone calls, see what the couple of friends I have at the Planet are doing."

* * * *CK/LL * * * *

Kal stepped off the glass elevator onto the catwalk high above Metropolis and over to his new front door, his companion coming in behind him. "Where the hell are you takin' me, kid?" the older man asked, his voice trailing off as he looked at their surroundings, his eyes going wide. He clutched a grimy hat in both of his hands nervously in front of him.

"I wanted you to see my new place," Kal announced.

Coop's eyes went wide and shot to the younger man's. "_Your_ new place?"

Kal grinned at him and held his hand out to him. "And give you this."

Coop glanced down at his hand, noticing a gold class ring with a red stone. He didn't get a chance to read the school inscribed on it before Kal turned his hand over, opening his palm. Lying in the middle of it was a key. Coop stretched out his hand but paused with his hand hovering over Kal's, his gaze questioning. "What's this?" he asked.

"What does it look like? It's a key to the place so you can stay here, maybe take a shower now and then," Kal told him with a little laugh, trying to tease the old codger.

Instead of taking the key, Coop withdrew his hand and started walking around the large open room, taking in the details of the apartment that he could see. It was sparsely furnished but what was there was of pretty fine quality. He didn't touch anything. "Kal, how did you land this place? How are you paying for all this?" he asked gruffly.

Kal's smile dropped with his hand as it still held the key. "I won the lottery," he bit out. "What difference does it make to you? I thought you'd be happy to have a place to crash that wasn't full of garbage."

He was lying of course. He had broken into another ATM to get the money for a couple of months' rent of the high rise apartment. As it was a new building and mostly empty in an area currently a part of an urban renewal project, the landlord had agreed to let him rent for the first three months without a lease to see if he thought it had 'long term potential'. As for the furnishings and food, well, let's just say that Atlantis wasn't the only club Kal had visited and more than one had a back room for some pretty high stakes poker games. With his abilities, he carefully won and lost until he cleaned out only the worst of the card sharks…telling himself that he was only taking money from those who deserved to lose it.

When Coop still didn't say anything and just kept looking around, Kal's smirk turned into a bit of a snarl. His 'gift' from Jor-El was burning slightly but he ignored it. "Or maybe I was wrong. Maybe you like being on the streets."

Coop finally faced him and held up a grubby hand. "Now, son, don't get your shorts in a twist. I just thought it a little odd that you would go from showering and gettin' your breakfast at the Y to living in a swanky place like this. As long as you ain't doing drugs or illegal trafficking, I'm happy to take you up on your offer," he told him. When Kal smiled again, Coop added, "for a shower and the occasional place to sleep. I refuse to impose on your hospitality more than once in a while."

Kal grinned and shrugged, tossing him the key. "Whatever, you say, old man. The place is yours to use or not as you want as long as I'm here. Just don't eat everything in the fridge and find a way to let me know you're here before I come inside so I don't think you're an intruder. I'm going to take a shower. Help yourself to a sandwich."

Coop acknowledged his words with a grunt. Kal turned and hurried to the bathroom, locking the door and leaning against it. He grabbed the hand towel off the ring and stuffed it in his mouth before screaming into it and tearing his shirt open. Looking in the mirror, his eyes widened in fear at the glowing and burning that came from the scar that decorated his chest. He clutched at it, not knowing what to do. Some instinct made him remove the class ring with the red Kryptonite. As soon as it was off his finger, the burning ceased and the glowing stopped.

Clark collapsed to the floor, trying to catch his breath. But the pain in his heart and his conscience started to sear him just as badly and he quickly replaced the ring, drawing on the strength and feelings the red K brought out. The first time this had happened, it hadn't been as intense and Clark had flipped out. He had no idea what to do, but it had stopped fairly quickly. The other two times after that the pain had gotten progressively worse but it was only this time that he had tried removing the ring and it had worked.

He realized it only seemed to happen when he was really pulled in two directions as to what he _should_ be doing versus what he _wanted_ to be doing and it had only happened a couple of times. He didn't know if it was a fluke, part of the parting gift from Jor-El, or a side-effect of long term exposure to red Kryptonite but now that he knew what to do to get it to stop, he wasn't as worried about it.

Pushing the incident out of his mind, Kal quickly showered and emerged to find Coop propped on a stool at the breakfast bar, stuffing his face with a sandwich. At least his hands and face looked a little cleaner. "So you gotta girl you've shown this place off to yet?" Coop asked him.

Kal paused just barely in getting himself some juice as a vague image of Jo from the club flitted through his mind. He had been to the club almost every night in the last three weeks, not even bothering to go inside tonight or last night, hoping to run into her again. But there had been no sign of the lively brunette that had captured his attention. As he couldn't clearly picture her face due to the dim lighting and his memory being somewhat on the fritz with the red Kryptonite, he wondered if he had just made her up or remembered her incorrectly. Shrugging nonchalantly, he guzzled some of his juice.

"Nah, nobody special enough to gain access to this fortress," he quipped, his scar burning just a moment at the memory of his loft in the barn in Smallville…what Jonathan had always affectionately called his 'fortress of solitude'.

Coop's hacking startled Kal and he swung around, worried that the old man was choking but then realized he was trying to stifle his laughter around a mouthful of sandwich. "Yeah right! Sure, son, you tell me, and yourself, whatever you want but I saw you freeze when I asked that question. You met somebody, dinchya?" he cackled gleefully.

Kal gave him half a grin back, the man's laughter contagious. But then he shrugged, not willing to let on how much it bugged him that he hadn't seen Jo again. He downed the rest of his juice and placed the glass in the sink. "Maybe I thought I did a couple of weeks ago but I haven't seen her since. It's ok though, I wasn't really all that into her."

Coop swallowed and chuckled, his eyes sparkling through his wrinkled face. "Well, be sure to leave a tie or sock on the doorknob if you don't want to be disturbed for some reason," he told the younger man with a wink. Kal just chuckled and shook his head, patting Coop on the shoulder.

* * * *CK/LL * * * *

**The Next Day…**

"I'm not sure I like this new haircut," Chloe worried into the mirror. "It's just so _short_!"

"I like it! I think it makes you look sassy and hip," Lois argued, standing behind her.

They were currently in the dressing room at the local mall, trying on clothes for their night out. It was the day after they had eaten their Chinese and Lois had spilled her story about her night at Atlantis. They had met Chloe's friends at a small coffee shop not far from the base and Lois had fit right in. She had even recruited the Daily Planet crew to help her take her cousin out for a night on the city, and since the General had called to say that he would be away for at least another night, Lois had planned a little surprise for her younger cousin, and ok, she was willing to admit to a small personal agenda as well.

"You don't think it makes me look a little…I don't know, butch?" Chloe asked, scrunching up her nose at herself before turning to face her cousin.

Rolling her eyes, Lois huffed a little in exasperation. "No, I don't think it makes you look butch! I happen to think it looks very chic on you, but if you don't like it, don't worry, Chlo. It's just hair; it'll grow back. Now, what do you think about this outfit?" she asked, turning back and forth in front of the mirror.

"Speaking of too short," Chloe muttered, looking at the skirt her cousin had on. "Isn't it a little…um, risqué for your usual style?"

Lois laughed. "Yeah, I know it's a little…_less_ than my normal fair but it's kinda what the dress code is for where we're going tonight. Don't worry; I plan on wearing some fishnet stockings underneath…if I settle on this one. Besides, all the important parts are covered."

Chloe's eyes widened and she chuckled. "Barely! Just where _are_ we going tonight, Lo? You still haven't told me."

Grinning wickedly, Lois almost had horns as she clucked her tongue. "Nuh-uh, I'm not telling. I told you it's a surprise." She looked at the pile of clothes that Chloe had tried on and pulled one out of it. "And I think this blue dress is the one for you for tonight, with some really cute, dangly earrings and some high heels…or the emerald dress would do if it makes you more comfortable," Lois tacked on, clearly making her choice known.

Giving a knowing smile back at her cousin, Chloe looked the two dresses over and, though the emerald one would normally be her first choice, picked the blue one. It was the color of the Caribbean Sea, had spaghetti straps and came just 3 inches below her tush. "I guess if we're going for a little more daring, this would be the one just out of my comfort zone."

Lois stopped short of squealing in delight but she did clap her hands together once. "We are going to have so much fun!"

Before her cousin could reply, Lois' cell phone rang with the Imperial March from Star Wars. "Crap! It's the General!" she huffed, digging in her purse. Hitting the button to connect, she forced a bright smile to her face. "Hi, daddy!" she said lightly.

"Lois! Where the hell are you? I've been calling the house off and on for the past 4 hours!" her father barked across the line.

Lois rolled her eyes but forced the smile to stay in place. "Chloe stayed the night last night and we decided to do some shopping. We're at the mall now."

"Oh, I suppose that's all right then. What are your plans for the evening?" he demanded.

"We're meeting some friends of Chloe's from the Daily Planet for dinner and a movie. Then we'll probably stay up all night at the house doing girl stuff. Is that ok?" she asked, rolling her eyes again at the fact that she probably sounded too happy and bubbly. Normally, she didn't ask for permission, she just sort of waited for him to give it.

Apparently, he had caught it too because there was a pregnant pause on the other end of the line. "General?" Lois asked, wondering if they had been disconnected.

"I suppose that'd be ok," he said thoughtfully. Lois started to cheer silently when his next words came down the line. "But I want you girls in the house by midnight." There was another pause before he added, "And I will be calling to make sure you're there, Lois."

Rolling her eyes for a third time, Lois finally felt the smile she was wearing start to falter. "Fine, anything else, General?" she asked through gritted teeth, trying to stay bright and cheerful.

His next words sounded suspiciously like he was trying to keep from laughing. "Don't spend too much at the mall…and, Lois?"

"Yes, daddy?"

"Don't roll your eyes at me, young lady." The line went dead and Lois stared at it wondering how her father knew.

* * * *CK/LL * * * *

**That Night…**

"_Now_ can somebody please tell me where we're going?" Chloe asked as they stepped off the elevated train onto the platform.

"What do you think, guys? Should we tell her?" Lois asked the other three people of their small group.

Regina rolled her eyes. "I don't understand why it's such a big secret in the first place!" Regina, at 23, was the oldest of the group and hands down the least likeable. Why she hung with the younger interns, Lois had no idea, but Chloe swore that she was the one who had your back at work when you really needed it. She was always helping Chloe edit her column and usually her comments, while a bit abrasive, were right on the money.

"Don't mind Reggie," Steve drawled, throwing an arm around Lois' shoulder and the other around Chloe. "She doesn't know the meaning of the word 'fun'. She pretends to do something like it but really she's a workaholic." Steve, the only male of the group, and that by birth only, was Lois' favorite of the DP crowd. He was sweet and absolutely hilarious.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?" Regina snapped, but her words lacked any real bite. "It's _Regina_, not Reggie!"

"ME-ow!" Steve said back making the others giggle, including Regina.

"Ok, so do I get to know where we're going or not?" Chloe asked again.

"Well, I guess we could give you a hint. Here," Lois said pulling something out of her purse. "You'll need this."

Chloe took the card from her and her eyes widened in surprise. "A fake ID! Lois, no one is going to believe I'm 25! And Carrie Sultan? Where did you get that name?"

Now it was Lois' turn to roll her eyes at her cousin. "I made it up! And as for the age, nobody will question it as long as you just act like you go to these sorts of places all the time. No nerves! The bouncers can smell fear."

Chloe's look turned wary. "What sort of places? And what bouncers?" she asked.

Ten minutes later, her question was answered as she stood outside of Atlantis with the others. Taking a couple of deep breaths, she tried to calm her nerves. She was secretly excited and curious about the club, and hearing the music thumping from inside made her a bit anxious to get inside. She smiled at Cassidy, the fifth part of their little group and the girl smiled excitedly back.

"This place is awesome, Chlo! You're going to love it," she gushed. She was always seemed to be over enthusiastic about things but her sweet nature made it bearable.

Passing by the bouncer without a hitch, the small group made their way inside and started looking around. Lois was scanning the darkness, trying not to get her hopes up as it was pretty unlikely that Kal would be here. It had been weeks since that night and she had no idea if he visited the club regularly. Cassidy pointed out a table in the corner that looked like it was being cleaned up and the group made their way over to it.

As the others got settled, Lois excused herself saying she was headed for the ladies' room. Once out of sight of the others, however, she made her way over to the bar. Her eyes lit up as she recognized the bartender from the last time she had been here. "Hey!" she shouted over the music to catch his attention.

Grinning at her, the bartender made his way over and leaned closer. "Hey, sugar, what can I get ya?" he asked. Then he looked a little closer and his gaze turned puzzled. "Have I seen you around here before? You look familiar but I know my regulars."

Lois flashed him a brilliant smile. "Yeah! I was here about a month or so ago. I was wondering if you've seen the guy I met that night. His name was Kal?"

"Kal? Sure! Everybody around here knows Kal. He comes in almost every night…has a drink, flashes some cash, wanders around, then he leaves…always alone," he told her.

Almost every night, and he always leaves alone? Lois bit her lip before asking her next question. "Have you seen him tonight? When was the last time you saw him?"

He shook his head. "Nah, haven't seen him tonight and he wasn't here last night but the night before that I was off. The last time _I_ saw him was about 4 nights ago. You want a drink?"

Lois sighed. Well, if he hadn't been in last night or yet tonight, maybe she still had reason to hope. Grinning again, she shrugged. "Sure. How about a beer? Whaddaya got on tap?" she asked.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Kal made his way through the streets in the convertible he bought second hand with the money he stole from yet another ATM. He barely felt a twinge at knocking them over anymore. No one got hurt, the bank was insured, he stimulated the economy…everybody won. As he pulled up outside the club, he did a quick check in the rearview mirror, ran a hand through his hair and flashed a cocky grin at the valet. "Hey, Glen! How's it shaking?"

"Nice, Kal! New?" the valet asked, nodding towards the car as Kal tossed him the keys.

He shook his head. "Nah, just borrowed it from a friend. Didn't feel like the bike tonight," Kal told him. "Not sure how long I'll have it but you're welcome to take it for a spin if you like. Not as sweet a ride as I would have liked, but it'll do until I get something else."

Making his way inside, Kal gave Viper, the bouncer at the door, a $50 high five in greeting and nodded at several of the staff he recognized. The place was pretty crowded, but would only grow more so as it was Saturday and still fairly early. Usually, it was a couple of hours later than this when he showed up but he had decided that it was either tonight or never. If he didn't see who he was looking for tonight, he wasn't coming back to look for her again.

He decided against going straight to the bar tonight, instead leaning against a wall near the dance floor, almost hidden under the stairs that lead to the upper level of the club. There, among the shadows, he all but disappeared as he watched the people milling around, sitting at the various tables around the club, bumping and grinding against each other on the dance floor. There were all types of people here tonight but none appealed to him on any level.

Smirking, Kal wondered how many of these people believed in aliens. Then he wondered how many were underage and had snuck in. Then he realized that he really didn't care about any of it. Sighing, he decided to wander around a little more. It wasn't long before he found himself in front of the smoking room door. Pursing his lips, he debated going inside, subconsciously shifting his weight from foot to foot.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Lois, Chloe and the rest of their party, with the exception of Cassidy who was on the dance floor gyrating by herself in awkward positions that would no doubt leave her muscles aching in the morning, knocked back another set of tequila shots, slamming the glasses down on the table and reaching for the lime slices to suck on. They all started laughing at each other and pointing.

"Uh uh uh, Chlo! You have to down the tequila and _then_ suck on the lime! That's the rule!" Steve teased her. "No cheating! You gotta keep up!" He had to shout to be heard over the music.

Chloe grinned in good humor. "Yeah, well, this _is_ my first drinking game with anyone other than Lois and I've only done that once. That was enough, believe me! I think I'm doing pretty well."

Regina rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Puh-leeze! You're barely out of diapers, _either_ of you, and you're talking as if you have all this worldly experience. You'll probably be toasted as soon as that second shot hits your system, Chloe Sullivan."

Lois smirked a little and threw her arm around her cousin's shoulders. "Ah, leave Chlo alone. She's a good girl and still pretty young, but I'm workin' on her!" she said with a grin and laugh at her cousin's eye roll. "See! Rubbing off already!"

"And what makes _you_ so different?" Regina asked Lois. "You're only, what, a year older than Chloe?"

Lois' eyes narrowed and she leaned toward the young woman. "What is your _problem_? Maybe if you'd get that gigantic stick out of your ass, you'd stop being such a b***h and people would actually like being around you. Who knows? You might even have a good time!"

Steve sniggered, trying to cover it up but finding Lois an absolute doll. Regina looked like she couldn't have been more shocked if Lois had dumped a bucket of ice water over her head. She just sat there for a minute, opening and closing her mouth. Then she scowled and slammed her hands onto the table, standing up. Lois jumped up at the same time, but Chloe was evidently still sharp witted enough to be able to intervene.

"Guys, please! Let's just chill out, ok? We're here to have a good time tonight…and I can't afford to get arrested for disturbing the peace or underage drinking," Chloe pleaded with them.

The two women glared at each other for a minute but reluctantly sat down…Regina dropping heavily into her seat and Lois slowly lowering herself into hers. Chloe sighed and sat down. Trying to build a little peace, she turned to Regina. "Lois has travelled all over the world with her dad and it's legal for her to drink in a lot of the places where she's lived, not to mention that she has grown up on military bases so I can safely say that she can drink almost anyone I know under the table. But let's not prove that tonight."

Regina eyed Lois with a grudging new respect. Perhaps this slip of a girl was more experienced in the ways of the world than she had given her credit for.

"And, Lois, Regina is a great reporter and my friend. So I would appreciate it if you would try to get along," Chloe said.

Lois waited a beat but then nodded and muttered an apology. Lois recognized the change in the older girl's demeanor, and she relaxed. Regina wouldn't be causing any major problems tonight.

Still feeling a little edgy from the previous tension, Lois stood back up, grabbing her purse. "I'm headed to the ladies' room again. Order me another shot. I'm still in," she declared as she headed off.

Once she was out of sight of the others, however, she took a detour from the way to the restroom. Watching the table of people she just left through the crowd, she then turned to make sure that Cassidy was still on the dance floor or at least had not spotted her. Satisfied that, for the moment, no one was paying her any attention, she made her way stealthily to the smoking room.

Lois made it to the corner, her back to the wall and keeping an eye on Chloe who was talking with Regina. Amazingly, the other girl was laughing at something her cousin had said. Lois was beginning to doubt that she _had_ a sense of humor. As she stepped around the corner, she swung around too late in the direction she was going and ran straight into a large solid object with an audible "oof".

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

It was as Kal was debating going into the smoking room that he felt someone crash into his back, evidently just having come around the corner and not paying attention to where they were going. Feeling disdain for whoever it was for not watching what they were doing, he turned around just as she apologized.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't see…" her words trailed off as her eyes widened. "Kal?"

Kal looked a little closer, it was dark in this corner away from the main room of the club and with the door to the smoking room closed. A smile started to spread slowly across his face, but he quickly schooled his features into a confused look. "I'm sorry, do I know you?" he asked.

When her face fell automatically, his chest started to burn a little. Then she squared her shoulders and flashed him a tight smile. "I guess not. Apparently, it's not important. If you'll excuse me," she said coolly as she tried to get around him to the door.

His hand whipped out and grabbed her wrist as her hand landed on the doorknob. "Wait!" When she turned back with an eyebrow raised, he allowed the smile on his face this time. "I was only teasing, Jo." He nodded towards the door. "You wanna go in?"

Lois felt ridiculously giddy that he had remembered her name after all and realized that Kal had affected her more than she had thought. She nodded. "Sure! I was going in before I crashed into you," she said, slightly out of breath.

He opened the door and gestured for her to enter ahead of him. As Lois passed him, she caught a whiff of his cologne. It was an expensive one but it was mixed with…something she couldn't quite place. Must have been something unique to him. She was also very aware of the dress she had chosen for the evening as she felt his eyes rove over her form.

The drape neckline of the dress was held up by a single metallic silver strap that went around her neck and plunged down just enough to show off some impressive cleavage. The silver and black snakeskin print had a metallic sheen to it. It hugged her curves and was far shorter than was usually comfortable for her but she felt wildly feminine in it and the dress added to her boldness in taking on her alternate persona. The knee high black boots had heels high enough to add another couple of inches to her height. She had added more curl to her long dark locks with hot rollers and then pulled it up on either side with silver combs, allowing it to cascade down her back but still be out of her face. The large silver cuff bracelet and silver earrings dangling from her ears completed her outfit and she bit her lip as she recognized the light of appreciation in Kal's eyes when she turned back to face him before dropping into a chair.

She pulled out her cigarettes and even though she knew he would refuse, Lois offered him one. He just shook his head, his eyes holding hers in the dim light as he took a chair opposite her. She wished she could tell what color they were. Her gaze took in his appearance and wondered at the all black ensemble he had chosen. Jeans, t-shirt, long leather jacket and boots, all black. It gave him an air of danger and sent a shiver down her spine but it wasn't in fear…not exactly.

"So I haven't seen you around when I've dropped in here lately," Kal said, his statement hinting at his question of where she'd been.

Taking a puff of her cigarette, Lois shrugged apologetically. "I know. I had something of a family emergency come up," she lied. She couldn't exactly come out and say that she had been grounded by her father. "But everything's ok now." She wisely didn't point out that he had admitted to looking for her when he was here.

Kal waited a beat before asking, "So are you here with Mr. Overprotective again? What is he anyway, a boyfriend? Brother?"

Lois shook her head. "No, neither. Just a friend and no, he's not here tonight. I'm here with some girl friends. What about you? You here with anybody?" she asked, trying to act casual.

Leaning back in the chair, he smirked as he shook his head. "Nah, I haven't been in Metropolis long and don't know a lot of people here. I'm here alone." He leaned forward again, his hand hovering near her knees where her legs were crossed. "That is until I ran into you again."

Feeling her stomach do a little flip, Lois blew the smoke out of her mouth to cover her nerves. She tilted her head and studied him for a moment. He didn't look away and his smirk turned into a slow and easy smile. She gave half a smile back. "And how do I know you haven't used _that_ line on other girls when you didn't find me?" she asked, keeping her tone light but remembering what the bar tender had told her about him leaving alone. She was just trying to feel out this stranger who fascinated her.

Kal bounced his knee a bit, his forearms resting on his thighs. Part of him, the strongest part taken over by the red kryptonite, wanted him to drop this girl and this conversation, arrogantly proclaim that he didn't need anyone and just walk away. But another part of him, the strongest part of him that was most scared and hurting of _Clark_, felt the need to reach out to this girl and grab hold of the only human contact that had made him feel anything since he left Smallville. He decided to go for a more compromising route.

"Maybe I tried it once or twice," he told her with an arrogant tilt of his head. "But maybe it just didn't work." He put his smile back on and she grinned back.

"Well, maybe it didn't work because you didn't use it on me before now," she flirted back.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Chloe glanced around the club, trying to see if Lois was at the bar or on her way back to the table. She had been gone for a minute but maybe there was a line in the ladies' room. Her attention was drawn back to her group when Steve bumped into her as he was dancing in his seat. "I _love_ this song! Come on, chica, let's hit the dance floor!" he said, grabbing her hand and dragging her to the crowd moving, more or less, to the music. Tuning into the song for a second, Chloe recognized Justin Timberlake's "Rock Your Body" and grinned at Steve.

Cassidy, who was still on the dance floor, saw them coming and gave a small cry of happiness at being joined by her friends. Chloe usually would be apprehensive and never get on the dance floor in this crowd but the alcohol and the backup of her friends there with her gave her more courage. She began to move with the others and allowed herself to let go to the music. They were in a small corner of the dance floor closest to their table on the exact opposite corner from the smoking room and on the opposite side of the room from the bar.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

As Jo finished her cigarette, Kal stood up and held out his hand to her. "Come on," he said.

Placing her hand automatically in his, she allowed him to pull her to her feet. "Where are we going?" she asked, dropping a hand on his shoulder to steady herself as she swayed a little from the swift landing on her feet. He felt himself shiver a little at the smokiness of her voice. It was unnerving how much this woman affected him. He tried not to think about the obvious age difference between them. He was pretending to be old enough to drink but Jo actually was. He tried to assuage his conscience at the subterfuge by telling himself that he didn't really know how old he was exactly.

"I thought we'd see how well we move together…on the dance floor," he told her as he glanced back, pulling her along gently behind him.

Kal led her out of the room and onto the dance floor, never letting go of her hand. As they moved into the crowd, she spun around him so she was facing him. The lights dimmed even more as a slower song came on and couples entwined. He squeezed her hand as he pulled her closer and felt the effects of the red kryptonite intensify as the ring dug into his finger slightly. Her arms wrapped around his neck while his wrapped around her waist, tightening as he pulled her closer to his body.

Lois looked up into his eyes, still hidden in shadows and wondered whether she should be worried that she had yet to see his face in the light. If asked to give a description of Kal to someone, say the police for instance, she would never be able to pick him out of a line up. Except that there was a part of her that felt like it recognized him…like this was where she had wanted to be all her life.

(If you'd like to hear the song I chose for them to dance to, it's "All Night" by Sam Phillips. Here's a link to it on Youtube: .com/watch?v=FP85mGkIToM&feature=related )

They moved together as if in a trance to the song and Lois felt the rhythm in her soul. Kal looked down at her and they slid together and apart, he spun her away from him and then back into his arms, they swayed and drifted with the music. As he took her hand and moved her around him in a complete circle, she bit her bottom lip and looked around and then back at him and he felt his eyes glow when he caught that movement, his gaze drawn to her mouth. He moved behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his chest as they swayed. She laid her head back onto his shoulder and brought one hand up to the back of his head to slide down his face.

Kal spun her back to face him slowly, pulling her flush against him, her hands landing against his chest. His hands gently rubbed up and down her arms as the song came to an end and he leaned closer, his lips millimeters from hers. The next song started abruptly, rudely throwing them back into reality and Lois pulled back, giving a nervous smile at him. The lights came up ever so slightly back to their normally dim level.

"Oh my god!" Lois said, suddenly realizing that she had been gone for a while and Chloe would probably be looking for her. "My friends are probably wondering what happened to me." Giving him a full smile, she took his hand again. "You should come and meet them. My cousin especially…" her voice trailed off as he pulled her back to him.

"No thanks, Jo. I'm not really in the mood to party with a group right now," Kal told her shaking his head.

"Oh, well," Lois' words faltered with her smile. She started to pull her hand out of his and put some space between them.

But then Kal pulled her back closer to him and smiled. "Wait a minute. Where are you going? Just because I don't want to meet all your friends doesn't mean I don't still want to get to know you better. Maybe we could go somewhere and talk? Maybe get a bite to eat or something?" he suggested.

Lois bit her lower lip. This was so not a good idea. What had she been thinking? How could she even contemplate running off with a complete stranger? An older male stranger at that?

At her hesitation, Kal pulled her closer still and did what he had wanted to do since they had met. He fused his lips to hers. She went stiff in shock at first but then relaxed and responded. As she melted into his arms, Kal deepened the kiss briefly before pulling back. He smirked at her. "I just wanted to get that out of the way."

Her heart rate off the charts, Lois rolled her eyes but smiled back before turning serious. "Kal, I'm not the kind of girl that just goes off with strange men and…"

He stopped her mid-sentence with a finger over her lips. "I just want to get to know you better, Jo. That's it. We can go wherever you want to go and do only whatever you want to do," he reassured her, tapping into Clark Kent.

Lois felt herself relenting and finally she nodded. "Ok, but I can't leave just yet. I'm here with those friends and my cousin. I don't want them to know I'm sneaking off with a stranger. I need to hang with them for at least another half an hour." She went over to the bar where she had dropped her purse as they had made their way onto the dance floor and pulled out her cell phone. Looking at the display, she sighed internally. 10:30 already.

"Ok, so I can pick you up outside in half an hour. How does that sound?" he suggested into her ear.

This was it. Decision time. Would she trust this stranger and go off into the night with him? She knew she shouldn't. It could only end in disaster one way or another. She wasn't going to stay in Metropolis indefinitely. He was an older guy. No one would know where she was. The list for not going with him was long. And yet…

"Yeah, I'll meet you out front at 11, maybe ten minutes after," she found herself saying, her heart pounding in anticipation.

Kal grinned at her and started backing away from her. "Alright then. Go back to your friends and I'll see you later."

Lois grinned back and then as he propped himself up on a stool at the bar, started to make her way back to the table in the other corner of the large room. Why did something so wrong feel so right?

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Chloe was starting to get worried. It had been too long since Lois had left them. But just as she was about to go looking for her cousin, she saw her making her way back to the table, a drink in her hand. "Lois! What took you so long?" she asked.

Lois shrugged. "Sorry. There was a line for the bathroom and then I wanted something from the bar and it took a minute for that. I wasn't gone that long was I?" she asked lightly.

Chloe looked at her cousin closer in the dark. She was hiding something, Chloe could tell. As she leaned closer, however, she got a whiff of her and drew back slightly. "Oh, Lois! You didn't!" she groaned.

"What? Chlo, what's gotten into you?"

"You smell like smoke! You didn't sneak off to have a cigarette did you?" Chloe scolded.

Looking only slightly guilty, Lois hid her face in her drink and muttered something. At her cousin's raised eyebrow and hand on hip, she rolled her eyes. "Alright, fine! I had a cigarette. So sue me! I told you I'm trying to quit but it's not easy. It was only my second one all day."

"Your _second_! Lois…"

But Lois interrupted her. "Chlo, we're here to have fun! You can jump all over me about smoking tomorrow. For now, let's just have a good time. Ok?"

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

They had another round of drinks and Chloe was laughing at something Steve and Regina were arguing about when something caught her attention at the bar. Or rather, some_one_ caught her attention. She only caught a glimpse but it looked like…

Standing up, Chloe grabbed her purse. "I guess it's my turn for a trip to the ladies' room. I'll be right back."

Cassidy, who had rejoined the group a bit ago, stood up with her. "I'll go with you, Chloe."

Unable to think of a way to stop her without it seeming weird, Chloe smothered a sigh. They made their way towards the bathroom but just before going in, she told her friend, "Oh, I forgot something. I'll be right back. You go ahead."

Shrugging, Cassidy agreed and went on into the restroom. Looking back towards the table and then to the bar, Chloe took a deep breath and started to make her way over to the bar. She kept trying to get a clear view of the person she had only caught a glimpse of, trying to see around all the people. Suddenly, the crowd parted enough and he turned just slightly and she caught her breath at his profile. Clark! It was really him!

Biting her lip, she debated on whether to confront him or not for a moment. Everyone back in Smallville was worried about him and it made her angry, but she also knew that Clark wouldn't just disappear unless he just didn't want to be found. She had regretted her decision to help Lionel Luthor spy on her friend almost immediately and had used the excuse that Clark had disappeared to try and stall the billionaire and try to figure out what he wanted with a farm boy, but that didn't mean that she wasn't still upset with Clark. The decision of whether to confront him now or not was taken out of her hands as he stood up and made his way to the door. Glancing back towards the direction of the table with her friends, she huffed and decided to follow him.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Kal dropped a large bill onto the bar and stood up. He wanted to go back to his apartment and pick up the motorcycle if Jo was going to be coming with him. That way she would be right up against him. It was only a couple of blocks from the club and he could have easily walked the distance every time he came but his arrivals were about an image he wanted to project. He liked being the "big man on campus".

He would take the convertible back to his apartment and then go back to the club for Jo on the bike. He saw there was a line for people waiting for the valets to either bring their cars or take them. He didn't feel like waiting so went up to the head valet and asked for his keys, saying he would get his car himself. Whistling lightly, Kal's mind was on the hours ahead with Jo and didn't notice that someone was following him.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Chloe tried to keep up with Clark while at the same time, not letting her shoes make too much noise. She didn't want him to see her just yet. Something in her gut told her that she should just follow him for now…see where he went. When he got to a convertible and started to climb in, however, she looked around frantically. She couldn't lose him now!

Running to the edge of the street she waved down a taxi that was driving by. Climbing in as the driver pulled over, she told him to follow the convertible. Chloe gave him a bright smile as he looked at her strangely but he didn't comment and she didn't offer an explanation. She was surprised when both Clark and the cab stopped at a high rise apartment building only a couple of blocks from the club. As Clark parked and started towards the elevators, she jumped out of the cab to follow.

"Could you wait here, please?" she asked the driver.

"It'll cost ya, honey," he told her. "The meter don't stop until you pay."

Glancing at the meter, Chloe decided she could afford it since the ride from the club hadn't been that far. "Ok, that's fine. I'll only be a minute." She hoped.

She walked up to the elevators just as the doors closed and was grateful that they had been closed enough for Clark not to see her. Instead of pushing the button to go up right away, she waited to see which floor the numbers would stop at in the elevator that Clark had gotten onto. Once she had it, she got on the elevator and pushed the button for the same floor. It was a glass elevator and the height it ascended to made her wonder about Clark's nerves. He usually was afraid of heights.

The doors opened and she stepped off the elevator to see Clark leaning against the door frame to one of the apartments. He straightened and his eyes widened a little at the site of her. He quickly schooled his features, however, into a smirk. "I thought I was being followed. What are you doing here, Chloe? How did you find me?" he asked harshly.

She stepped back as if he had slapped her. Then she got angry. "What am I doing here? Clark, your parents, Pete, Lana, everyone back home is worried sick about you and have been looking for you!"

Chloe stepped back slightly again as he marched over to her and grabbed her upper arms roughly. "Who else is with you? Who else knows I'm here?" he demanded.

She stared at him in disbelief but shook her head. "No one, Clark. I was at that club with some friends from the Daily Planet and I saw you and followed you back here." He dropped his hands and sighed in relief. "Clark, what happened? Why did you leave home? I mean I know that it was hard when your mom lost the baby but your parents need you. Lana cries herself to sleep at night. Lex is missing…"

Clark turned hard eyes on her. "Nobody needs me, Chloe. I just bring pain and trouble to everyone and everything in my path. I made a decision that changed everyone's lives and it was the wrong one." He thought about Jo and wondered if spending an evening with someone he was so attracted to was such a good idea considering the words he had just told Chloe. Hardening his resolve, he lifted his chin. "Go home, Chloe. And don't tell anyone that you found me or I'll run away so far that no one will ever find me."

"But, Clark…"

He stepped in front of her and got in her face. "I said go home! Leave! And tell Lana that she needs to move on. I'm tired of playing games with her," he ground out.

Chloe started to snap back at him but stopped when she looked into his eyes. Although it was pretty dark, she saw the pain that was there in them. Straightening, she decided that for now, maybe some distance was what Clark needed. Whatever had happened had hurt him pretty badly. Plus there was a part of her that kind of liked the idea of being the only one who knew where he was.

"Ok, Clark, I'll leave…for now. But would you at least think about calling your parents and telling them you're ok? I know they're worried about you," she said quietly. When he didn't say anything, she moved to the elevator and pushed the button to go back down. The last glimpse she saw of him as the elevator doors closed was him standing rock still, his fists clenched at his sides, his jaw tight as he stared off into the sky.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Clark felt his chest burning and he panted at the pain. He quickly made his way inside the apartment and collapsed against the door, thankful that it seemed Coop wasn't around at the moment. The pain intensified and he let out a cry and snatched the ring off his finger. As the pain subsided, he slid down to the floor and collapsed into tears. He cursed Chloe for finding him and bringing back all the agony of his past actions crashing down on him again.

After a few moments of sobbing, he couldn't take the pain anymore and slid the ring back on his finger. He closed his eyes as the effects rushed up his arm and eased the aching in his chest. When they opened again, they were glowing red and Kal jumped up, wiping his face with the back of his hand and disgusted by his moment of weakness. He quickly rushed to the bathroom, washed his face and hands and sped out of the apartment again, grabbing the keys to his bike.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Chloe made her way back into the club and back to her friends. Lois was downing another drink and hummed and waved her hands as she spotted her cousin. She swallowed and coughed a bit. "Chloe! Where were you? We weren't sure whether to order you another drink or not."

Shaking her head, Chloe forced a smile, but it wasn't as hard as she would have thought considering it was Lois. "I just stepped out for a breath of air. I think I'm pretty much done for the night. The crowd is starting to get to me and it's getting late."

Lois whipped out her cell phone and looked at the time. 11:02. She smiled up at her cousin. "You're right. It is getting kind of late but I'm not quite ready to go yet. You go ahead on home and I'll be there in a bit."

Chloe was about to argue when Regina stood up. "I'll go with you part of the way, Chlo. I think I'm ready to go too. I'll share a cab part of the way with you."

"Well," Chloe debated, looking at Lois. "Are you sure? You know the General is going to be calling in about an hour remember?"

Lois grinned and held up her cell phone, waving it back and forth. "It's called call forwarding, Chlo! I've done this dance with daddy dearest before. Do you need some money for the cab?"

Chloe shook her head. "Nah, I'll be fine. Just be careful! Call me when you head back so I know to look for you."

Lois rolled her eyes but smiled and nodded. "Alright, cuz. I'll call ya. Don't worry, though, I can handle myself." She gave Chloe a brief hug and then watched as she and Regina disappeared through the crowd. Forcing herself to wait a full two minutes, she watched Cassidy dance with some guy on the dance floor. Steve was swaying and humming with the music in the seat next to her.

Finally, she couldn't take anymore and jumped up, startling Steve. "You know what? I've changed my mind. I think I'm going to head out too."

"You want us to go with you? Make sure you make it home ok?" Steve asked.

"No! I mean, I'll be fine and you should probably keep an eye on Cassidy. I'm just going to catch a taxi," Lois reassured him. Then she dropped a quick peck on his cheek. "You're sweet for offering though. I'll catch you later?"

He winked at her. "Sure thang, sugar! Don't be a stranger! You're a blast to hang with…and if you happen to discover any of those good looking military types are playing for my team and kinda lonely, have them look me up," he laughed.

Lois made her way outside and discovered that the night had grown a little chilly. She wished she had brought a jacket with her. She looked around and heard the roar of a motorcycle coming towards the club. Stepping to the curb, she grinned as she recognized the outline of Kal sitting on the bike. Even as dark as it was, he had on shades and she found that she liked the look, despite the ridiculousness of wearing them at this time of night.

He grinned back at her and put the kickstand down. Climbing off the bike, he saw her shiver a little as the wind blew and he immediately took off his jacket. Wrapping around her shoulders, he tugged on the lapels and pulled her towards him, fusing his lips to hers. In her tipsy state, Lois immediately leaned into the kiss and parted her lips. He groaned softly and let his tongue explore her mouth, his hands weaving into her hair. Neither of them noticed when her combs fell out or heard them as they clinked softly on the asphalt.

Unbeknownst to either of them, a taxi was driving by at that moment. Chloe looked out the window and recognized the bike and Clark's form. He was kissing some girl with a long leather jacket on and he seemed to really be enjoying it. The old flame of jealously burned brightly and Chloe quickly looked away, not recognizing her cousin from that angle and the brief glimpse. It was obvious that Clark was telling the truth when he said that Lana should move on. He obviously had.

Lois pulled back, out of breath and Kal smirked down at her. "You ready to ride, Jo?" He held out a helmet to her.

Shaking her head, she pushed the helmet away. "I feel like living on the edge tonight. Maybe it's the company…or the alcohol but I'm going to say no to the helmet for tonight." She climbed on the bike behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, placing her feet up on either side of the bike.

He started the engine and she felt a shiver at the rumbling. "Hang on, Jo. You're in for the ride of your life," he told her over the roar of the bike.


	3. Chapter 3 Experimentation

**Close Encounters**

A/N: Thank you to everyone who is reading this story. If you are reading this on and haven't left a note to let me know what you think, I hope you will when the story is complete. The highest honor I feel you can have on that site is to have someone mark you as a favorite author, followed closely by marking your story as a favorite story. So thanks to all of you who have done so! I am humbly honored. I am so terribly sorry that it has taken so long to get this chapter out. 'To err is human, to forgive divine.'

Chapter 3 – Experimentation

Kal killed the lights on the bike and pulled over to the curb. Climbing off the bike after turning it off, he assisted Jo off and then moved the bike over behind some bushes against a high wall. "We're at the first stop of the night," he declared, trying to keep his excitement out of his voice.

Jo looked around, her confusion written on her face. "And where exactly are we?" she asked, looking up at the wall that was easily 10 feet high.

Obviously she had been expecting him to take her straight to his place. Her surprise amused him. Grinning, Kal took her hand and pulled her gently down the road and around the corner to a door that had an electronic keypad lock. He pulled her to stand against the wall, hidden in the shadows next to the door.

"Wait here a minute and you'll find out," he told her. "I'll be right back."

He could barely make out her half smile and narrowed eyes in good humored suspicion. "And where are you going?" she asked flirtatiously.

Kal's smirk stayed on his face as he backed around the corner, his eyes never leaving hers. "It's a surprise." He got almost out of sight before adding, "You do like surprises right?"

Jo bit her lip, trying to contain the full blown grin that was threatening to spread itself over her face. "Sure. Who doesn't like surprises?" she asked, lying through her teeth. While technically Lois liked the _idea_ of surprises, the truth was she had no ability to wait for surprises. The moment she got a wind of anything that smelled like a surprise, she was investigating, determined to ferret out the truth and whatever was hidden.

When he disappeared around the corner, Lois found herself looking around again. The area looked familiar and she felt that she should know where she was but couldn't place it in the dark. Not for the first time, she wondered at the lack of even a tiny fissure of doubt at her choice to be here with Kal. At least he hadn't taken her straight to his apartment, house, cardboard box, or whatever he lived in. That possibility had become very real in her mind as they were whizzing through the streets of Metropolis. It had also crossed her mind what it was that he would probably _want_ once they got to his place. So this was a pleasant surprise already…unless he lived here or was planning to do something to her here so that no one could trace her murder back to him…

Her rising panic was put on hold by the opening of the door from the inside. A head poked out and a hand was held out to her. When she looked back up at the face, she barely made out the whites of his eyes and his teeth as he smiled at her. Suddenly, although technically Kal had really done nothing to assuage her newly rising doubts per se, she felt them completely dissipate as she placed her hand in his.

Returning his smile, Lois stepped through the door, and Kal didn't let go of her hand as he pulled it closed again behind her. She looked around and her smile grew. "The zoo! We're at the zoo!"

Tilting his head in cocky assurance, Kal moved slightly closer to her side. "Surprise," he whispered into her ear, leaning close enough for his cologne to send her heart into overdrive. He didn't linger there, however…stepping back to a more comfortable distance, but still holding onto her hand.

Looking up into his face, her smile turned teasing. "What made you think of coming here?" she asked.

When Kal's gaze traveled down her body, Lois felt her cheeks warm and was grateful for the darkness to hide her blush. He pulled her to him and slid a finger back and forth under the strap around her neck holding her dress up. "Maybe it was the snakeskin dress that made me think you might enjoy a walk on the wild side…either that or your cat-like moves," he told her, his voice husky and sending shivers down her spine.

"And just how did you get in?" Jo's warm and teasing tone wrapped itself around him like a warm blanket and his wide grin returned.

Kal shook his head. "Oh, no, I'm not going to tell you. I've gotta keep some secrets, beautiful…makes me mysterious." He squeezed her hand gently. "I've always wanted to do one of those summer camps at the zoo or aquarium. So many of the animals are nocturnal that all you get to see when you come during regular visiting hours is them sleeping. Care to see what they're like awake?"

She looked around and took a hesitant step forward. "You sure we won't get caught? What if there are video cameras or a security guard or something?"

Kal chuckled but stepped farther out of the shadows, gently pulling on her hand. "Come on. You can trust me. We won't get caught." The inner voice that sounded a lot like Jonathan Kent whispered that the red kryptonite was starting to make him cocky and it would lead to trouble. Kal sank into the feeling the small piece of his home world brought and allowed it to silence his hesitations.

Jo looked up at him and he felt his breath hitch at her smile. Even in the darkness, she was beautiful and he felt that his life would never be the same…which was ridiculous! This was a total stranger! A woman who was too old for him…and human…and he was an alien. But somehow none of that mattered. All Kal wanted was to be with her, tonight, tomorrow, maybe…

His musings were broken when she spoke. "So where to first then, Kal?"

* * * * * CK/LL * * * * *

Lois and Kal had moved quickly through a couple of exhibits and were currently moving on to the big cat area. They had held hands or brushed against each other, but for the most part, they simply walked and enjoyed the atmosphere and company. Neither said much, each trying to avoid dangerous territory of their personal lives. It hadn't been very long, 20 minutes at most, since they had started their tour but it felt like time had stood still for them.

Leaning against the wall of glass that allowed viewing of the tigers, Lois was acutely aware of the man standing with her. Kal was just behind her, close enough to touch but not actually doing so, one hand placed on the wall above her head, bracing himself, and the other in his pocket. Neither said anything as they watched for the large felines.

She caught movement in the trees beyond the immediate front open area of the viewing and then she spotted a mother Bengal tiger moving with her two cubs down to the front moat that separated them from the glass. It was probably very deep but the mother cat kept a look out on her cubs, both very young. Lois didn't dare to breathe for fear of scaring them away.

That's why Kal's voice in her ear made her jump…at least that's what she told herself. "Aren't they magnificent?" he asked in almost a whisper. She felt goose bumps rise all up and down her arms.

"Beautiful creatures," she murmured in return, not moving.

"Then you belong here with them," he said in a husky tone.

She shivered ever so slightly and her eyes drifted closed. Lois Lane was usually put off by such cheesy comments, but she couldn't help but feel flattered by the line. Maybe it was the alcohol that hummed through her system. Or maybe it was the full moon that dodged in and out of the clouds. Or maybe it was just the quiet, intimate atmosphere but Lois found herself starting to really become addicted to Kal.

The mother cat held down one of her cubs and proceeded to bathe it with her large, rough tongue. The other cub played with her tail for a bit and then pounced at other things that caught his eye. Kal took a deep breath, his chest brushing Lois' back ever so slightly. As if having heard it, the mother paused in her ministrations and looked around. Her ears perked towards something else out of sight in the brush and they watched as all three cats disappeared back into the darkness.

Moving as if by some unspoken communication, Lois and Kal rejoined hands and moved on to the next exhibit. Lois at first was moving towards it with Kal, but as she realized what the next animal was, she tugged on his hand to keep moving. "Come on, I don't really want to see this exhibit."

Curious, Kal didn't allow her to budge him and held his ground, though he did stop instead of still heading towards it. "Why? You know what's next? It's the spotted hyenas. They're nocturnal creatures and you don't get to see them do much during the day, if you see them at all. Don't you want to see what they're like at night?"

Lois shivered involuntarily. "No, I don't. I don't really want to explain but I really hate hyenas."

Kal was tempted to take her to see them anyway or at least push for an answer about why she hated the creatures so much. Before he could say anything, however, they heard one of the animals in question start to whoop and cackle. The sound was unnerving and caught Kal off guard until he figured out where it had come from, but Jo's reaction was palpable. She started to shiver and her arms wrapped around her waist involuntarily. Something about this woman seemed to reach down and touch Clark, despite the red kryptonite induced "Kal" personality that was currently in charge. He felt the need to protect, console, comfort, hold…

"Hey, why don't we move on to the next exhibit? I don't really care about seeing the hyenas," he suggested, crossing his arms over his chest to keep them from reaching out for her and pulling her to him.

As they started to stroll on, her phone rang and Lois bit back a groan. It must be midnight already. She looked down at the caller ID and gritted her teeth. Yup. It was the General. "Kal, I need to take this real quick. I'll only be a minute, but do you mind…" she trailed off, hoping he'd catch her meaning. She didn't want to have to explain that she had to lie to her father about where she was.

He raised an eyebrow at her. The phone was on its third ring and Lois was gritting her teeth in nervousness. If it went to voicemail, she was dead. Finally, Kal smiled and nodded towards a small building that housed the restrooms. "I'll just use the facilities while you take your call," he said.

He disappeared into the dark and Lois stepped in the opposite direction, hitting the connect button on her cell phone. "Hi, dad," she said into the phone.

"Young lady, why did it take you so long to get to the phone?" came the gruff voice of her father. To her ears, however, he sounded tired…which meant he wasn't in the mood to be messed with.

"Sorry, I couldn't find where the cordless ended up. It took a minute to locate it," she lied smoothly.

"What time did you girls get in?" he asked.

Lois took a deep breath. Here came the interrogation. She just wanted to get this over with before Kal came back. But she knew that if she wasn't careful and paid attention, he'd trip her up and her cover story would blow up in her face. "About 30 minutes ago," she answered. Keeping her answers short and as close to the truth as possible was the best way to go with this. Technically, Chloe would have gotten to their home on the base about half an hour ago.

"You two came in earlier than curfew?" the General asked suspiciously.

"Well, Chloe wasn't feeling all that well, and we were just hanging out at a local spot they all like to frequent so we decided to call it a night," Lois told him. Then she cringed. Too much information! Crap! Now she was in for it. The interrogation would only become more heated now.

"What local hang out spot? Who is 'we'? And what is wrong with your cousin?" he fired out.

Sighing, Lois answered him as briefly as possible on the first two questions. "'We' is four of Chloe's co-workers from the Daily Planet, all except one is an intern. Three females, one male, although Steve is gay. The local hang out is a coffee shop not far from the paper called 'Joe's Cup of Jo'." Technically, that was the usual hang out spot for Chloe's friends but he didn't need to know that wasn't where they were tonight.

The last question would be the hardest to answer without getting another round of questions. Unsure of how much longer Kal would be, Lois started to feel a little rise of panic that she quickly stamped down. Her father could smell fear, even over the phone. "As for Chloe…well, it's kinda…" she groped for an excuse that would keep him from asking to speak with her as well as cut down or out any more questions.

"Women troubles!" she blurted out. Knowing she had found her ace, Lois calmed her heart and her voice. "Chloe is just having some women problems, nothing serious, just cramps and fatigue. Nothing to worry over." At the dead silence on the other end of the line, Lois knew she had hit the jackpot. Giving a silent squeal of triumph, it was all she could do to keep from dancing.

Sam Lane, three-star general with the US army, was almost squirming over the line. It was one thing to know what women went through, but it was something entirely different to even acknowledge that his daughter and her cousin went through those same things. It was times like this that he wished his wife were still alive to the point of almost pleading with the universe. She'd know exactly how to handle this situation, or at least know what to say to Lois' admission.

Clearing his throat a couple of times, her father finally said, "Well, maybe some rest is the best thing for her. You two get some sleep and I'll be home somewhere around 1430 hours."

"Will do, General," Lois said, stopping just short of saluting him.

She let out a big breath as she disconnected the line. Turning around, she almost ran right into Kal. Lois let out a small squeak, then placed her hand over her chest and gave him a smile. "Whoa there, Kal! Boy did you give me a fright!"

Kal tilted his head, his eyes narrowing in slight suspicion. "You weren't expecting me to come back or something?"

"Of course I did, I just didn't realize you were that close behind me," she told him with a slight swat to his shoulder.

He studied her for a moment. "So everything ok?" he asked slowly, nodding towards her phone.

"Sure! Yes, of course! I was actually expecting that call," Lois chirped somewhat nervously. She really didn't want to have to try to explain why she had been speaking to her father and she wasn't quite sure how much he might have overheard.

Kal's eyebrows went up in surprise. "You were? At midnight? Who calls you this time of night?" Then a thought struck him and he was grateful for the darkness as he fought shame on the Clark Kent side with pride and arrogance on Kal's side. "That wasn't your husband was it? You aren't married, are you?"

"What?! No, I'm not married! Just what kind of woman do you think I am, buddy?" she demanded, poking him in the chest. "For your information, that was one of my friends from the club, calling to make sure I was ok since I had decided to leave with a stranger." The lie came so easily, Lois almost believed it herself.

Holding up his hands in innocence, Kal placated her. "Alright, alright! No need to get so defensive. I was just checking. I don't like to share," he said with a smirk that she could hear. At her exasperated sound and rolling of her eyes, he chuckled and put his arms around her, drawing her closer to his body. "You're kind of cute when you're annoyed," he teased.

Tilting her head back to look into his eyes, that she could only just make out, she raised one eyebrow. "And how, exactly, would you know that in this darkness?" she teased back, good humor mostly restored. "Maybe I'm close to 60 years old, with a mustache and bushy eyebrows. You wouldn't be able to tell too much considering the lighting we've always been in together."

Smirking, Kal boldly let his hands slide down to her bottom and he gently and briefly squeezed her buttocks, causing her to let out a slight yelp of surprise. "If this is the ass of a 60 year old, you need to sell your secret because you could make millions; I can live with bushy eyebrows, if you do indeed have those, though I think I've seen you in good enough light to know that's not the case; and as for the mustache…"

Instead of finishing his sentence, he lowered his head and captured her mouth in a soul-searing kiss, complete with dueling tongues and lip nibbling. When he pulled back, he was happy to find that she was clinging to him as if she were unable to hold herself up and she was panting heavily. Grinning down at her, he said, "Definitely no mustache."

Having forgotten the conversation in the wake of that mind-blowing kiss, Lois was caught off guard by his words and burst into a full, all out laugh. Dropping her forehead against his chest, she continued to chuckle as she said, "Yeah, well, maybe there is something to be said for the dimmer lighting…adds to the romance."

Finding her laugh contagious enough to cause him to chuckle in response, Kal gently pulled back from her and took her hand. He dropped a quick peck on her fingers that were entwined with his. "How about we pick up the tour of the zoo and then go somewhere for coffee after we're done? I know it's getting a little chilly out here."

Squeezing his hand briefly, Lois smiled up at him. "Yeah, but you're so warm, I barely notice. So just keep close by and I'll be fine."

Moving his arm to drape over her shoulders, he pulled her into his side. "Well, I suppose if I must, I'll find a way to make the sacrifice," he sighed.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

It had been a unique evening, Lois would admit that, and one that was full of fun memories. They had almost made it back to the door they had entered and were munching on popcorn and cotton candy and sipping on sodas Kal had gotten from the small diner they had passed that someone had left unlocked. Kal held the bucket of popcorn to her but she shook her head, having had enough. He pitched it into the trashcan along with the empty cotton candy bag outside of their last stop at the zoo. Lois followed it with the empty soda cups.

Looking up, Lois squinted as she tried to read the sign for what the building housed but couldn't make it out and she couldn't remember what it was. "What's left? Just whatever is in this building?" she asked.

Kal gave a secret smile and took her hand. "Yeah, I think you'll like this last stop."

He pulled her gently to guide her inside ahead of him. He moved up behind her as the door clicked shut after them, circling her waist with his arms as she looked around, an amused grin on her face. His hands clasped hers gently and he walked them forward a few steps, nudging her along with his knees and shoulders for the first couple of steps. Her hands were cool and soft in his and his thumb started to stroke the back of one subconsciously.

"Not that I can't see how the lighting contributes to the romantic ambiance, but why exactly would you think I would enjoy the Insect and Reptile House?" Lois asked, her question laced with amusement.

The only sources of light were from the heat lamps in the various tanks and cages that housed all types of creepy, crawling scorpions, centipedes, turtles, snakes, salamanders and other animals that usually repulsed women. Kal chuckled as he brought a hand up to gently brush past her ear, down her neck, sending shivers down her back and goose bumps to rise, to trace his fingers under the edge of his jacket that she was wearing, the backs of them brushing her bare skin at the junction of her neck and shoulder. His index finger caught the edge of her dress' neckline and he tugged gently to draw attention to it.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe something about the snakeskin dress, or was it the sneaking off from your friends for a smoke, that told me you like to flirt with danger now and again. Oh no, wait! I know what it was; it was the fact that you went off in the night with a strange guy that told me that," he teased softly. Chuckling again, Kal waved towards the animals exhibited in front of them. "Come on, tell me you don't want to see the alligators or the king cobra."

She laughed. "Actually, I do like snakes," Lois admitted. "Although I prefer the pythons. I find it fascinating that they squeeze their prey to death before swallowing them whole."

Throwing his head back slightly, Kal let out a bark of laughter, squeezing her in his arms. He dropped a kiss on her neck and she tilted her head to the side, giving him better access, surprising him and causing his blood to heat up. "I have a feeling that no matter how long we knew each other, you would always be full of fun surprises," he whispered against her skin.

Biting her lower lip, Lois found that she was feeling bold with this stranger. Maybe she just wanted one crazy experience to be able to look on when she was old. Maybe she wanted to have something that her dad would really flip over. Maybe she really was just attracted to this guy, but it felt like it was so much more than any of that. Kal was like the true North to her compass of a life. It was like he was the one she had always been looking for, and she knew how crazy that would sound aloud, so she didn't even admit it to herself…didn't even think about what she was doing. She would just feel, just enjoy, just allow things to progress.

Lois spun around within his arms, and Kal wrapped his arms tighter about her waist and pulled her body closer to his. The lighting was a bit better in here for Lois to make out a little more of his face, though it was still in shadows and she still couldn't tell the color of his eyes. He really was handsome and though she couldn't tell everything, the look in his eyes made her heart speed up. Her arms snaked their way around his neck, her fingers playing with the hair at the nape of his neck.

"You'd better believe it," she flirted back. She bit her lip and smiled up at him coquettishly.

Kal caught her closer to him, unable to help feeling that this was where she belonged, in his arms…forever. Refusing to allow that line of thinking to go on, he studied her face in the dim lighting, unable to make out the color of her eyes but seeing that she looked younger than he first thought. She seemed so confident and self-assured that he had pegged her age at close to thirty or so, but now he would place her age closer to early to mid-twenties, but that only because she must be old enough to have been in the club, old enough to drink and her independence. As her arms slid up around his neck and her fingers played with his hair, he felt a shiver go down his spine but he remained still. When she bit her lower lip and smiled up at him in that way that made his blood boil, he groaned and fused his mouth to hers.

After several moments of intense kisses, tongues dueling, bodies pressed together tightly, hands petting faces and roaming over backs and through hair, Kal pulled back to give them both air, more necessary for her than for him. Panting with her chest heaving, Lois looked up into his eyes. "Wow!" she said huskily.

"What do you say we skip the rest of the tour and get out of here?" Kal asked with raised eyebrows. Jo bit her lip again in slight indecision, her body warring with her mind and her heart pulled in the middle. He saw it and added, "We don't have to do anything you don't want to." With those words, she gave him a full smile and a nod.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**The Next Morning**

Kal propped his head up with the palm of his hand, his elbow resting on his pillow as he looked down into the face of the angel sleeping in his bed. In the glow of the morning sun, she looked much younger than she must have been, almost close to his own age. He gently brushed aside a lock of her dark hair that was across her cheek, careful not to disturb her. She had fallen asleep in his arms in the moments just before dawn. They had talked about everything and nothing at all. Never had he had such a deep and meaningful connection with what was essentially a total stranger. The part of him that was Clark Kent seemed to be brought out in Kal by this woman, despite the best efforts of the red kryptonite. He vacillated between wanting to show off his powers, super speed her someplace exotic and claim her for his forever, and wanting to take her home and have her help him find redemption with his parents and his previous life.

Jo took a deep breath and wrinkled her nose a couple of times as if something were tickling it and Kal held his breath, wondering if she would awake or if she would fall back to sleep. Her hand came up and brushed at her nose before she snuggled deeper into the pillow and her breathing deepened again. She looked so beautiful, her hair tousled, her make up smeared, her lips swollen from his kisses, her soft snores making him want to chuckle aloud. She was wearing his white t-shirt, the only thing white that he still owned, the same white shirt he wore when he left Smallville. He sighed softly at that, rubbing his own, black t-shirt-clad chest subconsciously over the symbol burned into it…the symbol she had not seen but had felt.

*FLASHBACK*

_Kal shoved the door open to his apartment and waved for Jo to go in ahead of him. When she didn't move right away, he looked at her and raised an eyebrow in question. "Something wrong?"_

_ "What happened to that coffee you promised me?" she asked back, her head tilted to the side and an amused, though somewhat nervous smile on her lips._

_ He answered with a gaze that could melt ice. "I have coffee here," he told her. "I also have beer if you'd rather." Just because alcohol didn't affect him didn't mean he wouldn't keep a couple of beers around for when Coop dropped in._

_ A soft snort escaped her and she walked on inside. "I'll bet," she said, looking around as she removed his long leather jacket._

_ Kal took the jacket from her and tossed it over the nearest chair back, his eyes not leaving her. He had rented this place with her discussion with her friend in mind. Now that she was here and actually seeing it, he was curious if it was a little of her fantasy for herself come true. Her eyes sparkled as she looked back at him._

_ "Nice place," she said appreciatively. Going over to the balcony and looking out at the city below, she added, "Spectacular view."_

_ Moving to stand behind her, he didn't touch her but said huskily, "It's never looked better."_

_ Jo spun around to look up at him, her breathing picking up as she looked up at him. The pale moonlight added credence to his statement and he groaned as the magnetic pull between them became too much to resist. Moving simultaneously, they threw themselves at each other, fusing their mouths together and embracing tightly._

_Jo's hands pulled and tugged on the edges of his black shirt, freeing it from the confines of his dark jeans, their mouths gliding over each other's and never missing a beat. As he lost himself in her kisses that tasted like wild cherries, it didn't register at first when her hands slid under the front edge of the t-shirt and up his chest. As her fingers brushed over the symbol that Jor-El had burned into his skin, however, she pulled back._

_ "Kal? What is this?" she asked, as she traced the symbol._

_In the darkness, he could just barely make out the concern in her eyes as she strained to see what it was that she was feeling under her fingers. Kal reached up with his own hands and stilled hers gently. Every time any other girl from the club had even brushed the scar, it would bring unbelievable pain, but as Jo's hands rested on the edges, he felt no pain at all. Still he gritted his teeth at the reminder from his birth father._

"_A gift from my father…a little reminder of my place and his plans for me," he growled out, trying to control his anger._

_The tone of his voice must have caught her attention, however, for her eyes snapped to his. He could only imagine that his were glowing with the anger inside of him threatening to erupt through his heat vision. Now the concern in her eyes was mixed with disbelief and anger._

"_Your father did this?!" Jo exclaimed. "What kind of monster is he? Is he still alive? Was he arrested for this? I can't believe…"_

_Kal's heart swelled at her outrage in his behalf. Deciding to end her tirade early, he once again captured her soft lips, bruising them with his own. After several moments of whimpers and moans, he pulled back again and pressed a kiss to her forehead and each of her eyelids. "Thank you for your concern, but he's long dead. I don't want to talk about it and I don't want to think about it. Right now, all I want to think about is you," he told her._

_After a moment of looking up into his eyes, she nodded and let him pick up where they had left off. He released her hands, and when she moved them to trace the scar, he waited for the pain. Kal sucked in his breath as, instead of the expected pain, he felt more attraction to her than ever and there was another feeling, not unpleasant but he was unable to define it as her light touch followed the pattern of the symbol of his birth family. Finally, he pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind and let himself just feel the moment._

*END FLASHBACK*

Kal felt the call of nature and slowly eased himself out of the bed, knowing that Jo needed her sleep. She had had a long, full night and he knew she must be tired. He wondered briefly if she had to work but decided to let her worry about it when she woke up. It was Sunday and the odds were better that she didn't and either way, he hoped to keep her there a little while longer. He padded to the bathroom in his t-shirt and boxers, took care of what he had gone in there for and brushed his teeth.

His eyes caught his reflection as he spit into the sink and he stood back up and studied his face as he placed the toothbrush back in the holder. The blue eyes were ringed with red and he brought his right hand up in a fist, looking at the ring that bore the name of the high school in the town that held his past. Suddenly, his chest began to burn again, stronger than ever. Biting his tongue at the impulse to scream out in agony, Kal ripped his shirt in two, throwing the pieces off of him as if the lightweight material was strangling him and making the pain worse.

The memories of what he had done, the reason he was in Metropolis flooded his mind and he gasped and dropped his head, gripping the granite counter until parts of it crumbled in his hands. Jo's words to her friend on the train went through his head…the words about his parents worrying about him. He growled in pain and rage, finally snatching the ring off of his finger and collapsing in a heap on the floor as the pain began to subside and the glowing of his chest stopped. Drawing his knees up, Clark rested his forearms on them and his head onto his arms, sobbing softly.

He couldn't go back; the thought of the woman in his bed only made his heart hurt harder. No matter how much he might dream, he couldn't take her back with him for there was no way to go back. His parents would never forgive him, Chloe would never forgive him, Lana would never forgive him. He only brought pain and destruction to everyone he ever cared about. That thought brought him up short and his head snapped up.

Jo couldn't be a permanent part of his life, no matter how much he might want it. She would only end up hurt in the end…or he would. It was the way it always went. Unsure of what to do, Clark grunted and jammed the ring back on his finger, feeling the relief that the red K brought. His eyes glowed again and he jumped up off the floor, washed his face and made his way to the kitchen. Clark Kent might accept that he had to give up the woman he had found for both of their sakes, but Kal wasn't ready to give her up just yet. He was going to hold onto the best thing he had ever found for as long as he could.

He rounded the wall that divided the bedroom from the living area and made his way to the refrigerator, took out the carton of orange juice and, after opening it, began to chug it right from the carton. After finishing off what little was in there, he tossed the empty container in the trash, looked into the nearly empty refrigerator and frowned. An old Chinese take-out carton, 4 bottles of beer, a molded lump that might have been anything at one time. That was the sum of the contents of the refrigerator. He sighed and decided that maybe Jo would like a real breakfast. He really had no idea.

There was a noise at the front door and Kal super-sped into some clothes and over to stand where the person coming in wouldn't see him at first, giving him the advantage to attack. He drew himself up short from the attack, however, as he recognized the figure entering his apartment. Walking over to him, Kal placed a hand on the old man's shoulder and gently swung him around, getting a startled grunt.

"What in the…" Coop started to cry out but Kal's finger to his lips and shushing stopped him. Switching automatically to a whisper, Coop looked around. "What the heck's goin' on? Why am I whispering?" he asked. When Kal only grinned at him and raised his eyebrows, Coop let out a muted chuckle. "Oh, I get it. You've got company. Well, you didn't leave anything outside like I told you to if this situation were to arise so how in Sam hill was I supposed to know?" he told him with a wink. "I'll just sneak back out the way I came in and…"

Kal shook his head and drew the older man around the side of the wall to the counter of the kitchen. Gesturing towards the empty coffee pot, Kal spoke softly. "I haven't had the chance to make coffee yet, but if you'll make a pot, I'll go out and grab us some breakfast. Any special requests?" He grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair he had tossed it onto last night, his keys from the counter and raised an eyebrow at Coop.

"Nah, whatever you bring back will be just fine by me," Coop answered, his low voice coming out more gruff than usual. "Could I go ahead and take a shower?"

His eyes darting to the other side of the wall where Jo was still sleeping, Kal's expression softened just the slightest bit but Coop caught it and he hid a smile at it. It seemed that Kal had found someone special. Coop hoped that he would get a chance to meet her. The younger man shook his head as he opened the door.

"Wait until she gets up and knows you're here. I wouldn't want her to think it's me in the shower," Kal told him with a wink before disappearing behind the closed door.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Lois awoke with a pounding headache, her hair going in every possible direction, her eyes felt full of grit and her mouth as dry as cotton…and yet, she couldn't remember the last time she had felt so at peace, so at home, so…confused. As her eyes focused on the unfamiliar ceiling and her brain started to register the feel of unfamiliar sheets, her eyes widened and darted around, trying to figure out where she was.

Sitting up, Lois pulled the sheet up automatically to keep herself covered until she looked down and realized that she was wearing a t-shirt. By the size of it, however, it obviously wasn't hers. As the night's events caught up with her, she sucked in a breath and her eyes searched for her host, for several reasons. It was daytime, the sun was shining brightly, and she had yet to see her newest _friend_ in full lighting.

She also couldn't remember exactly how the evening had ended and it worried her a little…ok, maybe more than a little. Lois remembered the club and a lot of alcohol, but she still remembered the dance with Kal, leaving on his bike with him, every bitty detail about each of their kisses, and most of the details of their private tour of the zoo. What she didn't remember was what happened after they got back to his apartment. She remembered agreeing to come back with him, making out with him, touching what felt like scars on his chest that he said he had gotten from his father and then…and then…well, that was where things got sketchy, and truth be told, that's where she thought she should remember the most.

Lifting the sheet, Lois blew a breath out at the sight of her underwear still being on…or was it _back_ on? She bit her lip and scrunched her eyes up, trying to put together the pieces of her memory. Surely she would remember if they had…her face heated up and she cleared her throat. Finally, Lois squared her shoulders, lifted her chin and decided that she would remember after coffee, or when she saw Kal. That was it! She was hung over and caffeine deprived.

Taking a deep breath, she tilted her head and listened. There were muffled sounds coming from the other side of the wall, the kitchen area if she remembered correctly. Throwing the covers back, Lois started to leap out of the bed but the pain of a headache got her to slow down a bit, although it wasn't as bad as she had been expecting. When she reached the corner of the wall, she stopped, biting her lip in nervousness. She took a deep breath, no idea which she feared more, that he was even older than she thought and hideous, or young and as wonderful and hot as she thought.

Finally working up enough courage by reminding herself that she was a Lane, the daughter of a three-star general, and world traveler, Lois stepped around the wall, stopped short…and screamed. The old man sitting at the counter almost fell off his stool at her scream and answered it with a startled cry of his own. Lois' eyes darted around the room, looking for anything she could use as a weapon. She grabbed the nearest object she could lay her hands on and, keeping her back to the wall, started to move towards the door.

"Who are you?" she demanded loudly. "What are you doing here in Kal's apartment?"

"I'm a friend-a-his. Name's Coop," the old codger answered holding his hand to his heart. "You scared the daylights outta me!"

"I scared you?!" Lois exclaimed incredulously.

He nodded and smiled at her hand and what it was holding. "Whatchya planning on doing with that, young lady?"

Lois frowned in confusion until she realized where he was looking. Holding up her hand, she couldn't stop the sheepish grin that spread over her face. "Well, honestly, I have no idea. But I would have found some way to take care of you with this…wooden spoon," she answered with a chuckle, placing the utensil back on the counter where she found it. "I'm…Jo," she told Coop, remembering just in time that she was using part of her middle name.

Circling the counter, Lois moved to the coffee pot. Opening the cabinet right above where it was sitting, she was surprised to find it empty, completely. "Huh. Weird," she murmured.

"There's an extra coffee mug in the sink. He only has two," Coop told her, holding up the mug in his hand.

"So where is Kal anyway?" she asked as she found the other mug and filled it, her movements a little slower due to her headache. Opening the refrigerator, she grimaced and shut it, then began randomly opening cabinets.

"He went out to grab breakfast for the three of us. What are you looking for?"

"Alka-Seltzer…and cream and/or sugar for the coffee. The best cure for a hangover is an ice bag to the head, Alka-Seltzer for the stomach and coffee for the sluggishness, though I usually wait for the coffee after the other two." Lois opened the drawers looking for a towel and then moved on to the freezer. "God! The man doesn't even have ice! What's up with that?"

"He just moved in not too long ago and he's a young bachelor. I have a feeling that he doesn't stay here much. Sleeps and showers here but that's about it. I'm pretty sure the wooden spoon was a prop from when they were showing the apartment. Don't bother looking for anything else to go in the coffee. He's out of creamer and since that's the only thing he puts in his coffee, he'll bring some back but there's no sugar," Coop told her. "You'll have to drink it black or wait until he gets back."

"How long has he been gone?" she asked, dropping onto the other stool at the counter.

"Somewhere around 20 minutes so he should be back any second now," he answered.

As if saying it had somehow conjured Kal out of thin air, there was the jingling of keys at the door and, as it opened, Lois stood up nervously. At that moment, she wished she had gone into the bathroom and washed her face, or at least looked into the mirror. She had no idea how bad she must look but based on past experience, it wasn't pretty. As a male figure stepped around the door, butterflies sprang up in her stomach.

A dark haired young man in sunglasses that hid his eyes came inside and closed the door, carrying a brown paper grocery bag. His hair was ruffled and his bangs hung down to his glasses. The sun was shining through the window behind him, making it more difficult for Lois to see details. He was wearing black slacks, a black t-shirt and his black leather jacket with the collar turned up. He was extremely sexy with scruffy whiskers that dusted his face, making it more difficult to determine his age.

"Hey, sleepy head. You're up earlier than I thought you would be," he said with a smirk. "I hope you're hungry. I brought donuts, bagels, creamer for the coffee and some fruit." Even with his eyes hidden, it was easy to follow their movements as they started at her feet, swept up her legs, paused at the edge of his t-shirt that she was wearing, and continued up to her face, finally meeting her eyes. Kal's whole demeanor screamed self-confidence and reminded her of the big cats they had seen the night before at the zoo.

Lois felt her face heat up at his obvious appreciation. She moved to take the bag from him, looking for the creamer. "I never sleep well in strange places…and no, I'm not hungry. Stomach is a little upset from either what I ate or drank last night." She busied herself emptying the contents of the bag and silently cursing herself. Seeing him hadn't helped her memory. She still had no idea if they had done the deed. Gah! Shouldn't she have _some_ clue?!

When Lois pulled out the donuts, she smiled at the box and opened it up, just to see what he had bought. It was a mixed dozen and she couldn't keep from helping herself to the maple glazed. They were her favorites. Taking a big bite, she poured creamer into her coffee and stirred with the wooden spoon. Her eyes stayed glued to what she was doing but her senses were filled with the dark haired young man.

"Well, I think, if you don't mind, I'm gonna take a shower and then make myself scarce. I don't like to leave my cart in the same place too long," Cooper told them. Truth was the tension in the room was making him uncomfortable. "Unless you just want me to come back later…"

"No, no! You go ahead. Don't mind me…that is if it's ok with Kal," Lois told the old man. Kal nodded and Coop hopped off his stool and disappeared behind the wall. Lois' eyes followed him and then took in her surroundings more…the ones on the other side of the counter instead of the ones that she was really wanting to. "You sure live sparsely," she quipped, finally glancing back up at Kal over her shoulder, swallowing the last of the donut. "Although the few things you do have here are nice. Coop said you hadn't lived here long."

Moving towards her, Kal took off the jacket and flung it over one of the stools. "No, not long." He moved to stand behind and to the side of her, waiting for her to look back up at him again. When she didn't right away, he moved closer, now standing right behind her but still not touching her. Kal smirked when her breathing and heart rate went up; she was definitely aware of exactly where he was. Now she was deliberately avoiding looking at him.

Lois kept her eyes focused on the counter in front of her, her coffee, the spaces she could see on the other side of the counter, anything but looking at Kal. She could feel his body heat behind her and her breathing became soft pants as she saw his hand come around her out of her peripheral vision and she held her breath in anticipation of what he would do. She let it out in a small gasp of relief mixed with disappointment as he only laid his sunglasses on the counter in front of her. Then her chest started to heave as he caged her with his body against the counter, still not actually touching her.

Looking down at the hand on her left, she didn't notice the ring that was on his right hand. He actually had very nice hands, large, well-shaped, long fingers that fit his hand that looked so strong…she jumped when she felt her hair being moved to the side and his lips gently brushed her neck. Of their own accord, her eyes closed and her head tilted to the side to allow him better access. She couldn't seem to get enough oxygen into her lungs.

As Kal's lips parted and his whiskers scratched at her skin, Lois swallowed and let out a soft moan, his tongue darting out to taste her skin. "Mmm, you taste like you smell…like wild cherries," he murmured huskily.

Lois vaguely registered his words through the haze that his actions were having on her senses. Her sister Lucy had sent an expensive gift basket of bath wash, lotions, and other spa paraphernalia to her for her birthday, all with the unusual scent. She would have to remember to send her little sis a thank you card. All thoughts of anything but Kal disappeared as his hands came around her shoulders and turned her into his arms. He fused his lips to hers, his kiss quickly building in passion and increasingly demanding, and Lois gave back as good as she got.

Kal slid his hands down her arms and circled her waist, lifting her and seating her on the edge of the counter, causing her to give a small squawk of surprise, and then he moved to stand between her legs. His hands slid up her thighs, stopping at the edge of his t-shirt. Her hands were mobile as well, but they didn't stop at the edge of his shirt, sliding up underneath and when her fingers brushed the same scar she had felt the night before, she pulled back and looked down at the black t-shirt covering his chest.

He froze as he noticed where her hands and gaze had landed. Taking a deep breath in slight nervousness, his chest puffed out to brush against hers and Kal allowed himself to feel the effects of the red kryptonite, lifting his chin and looking her in the eyes. Her hazel eyes were lined with the smeared make up but he still saw the question in them. In answer, he removed his t-shirt in one swift movement and threw it onto the counter behind her, his hands bracing on either side of her, waiting for her reaction to something he had shown no one else.

Lois' breath hitched at the sight of his chest. The scars, or was it just one big scar, was a loud and angry reminder of the atrocities one human could do to another, and the fact that it had been inflicted by his father…she shuddered slightly at the horror of the idea. Her hands, which had dropped into her lap while he had removed his shirt, lifted and rested on his chest. They lightly traced the blemish that covered the expanse, without which Kal's chest would be a perfect specimen of masculinity. His muscles jumped under her touch and his grip on the counter tightened but he forced himself to stay still and let her explore his body. His skin seemed to heat up more under her touch.

"How did he do this?" she whispered. Her eyes narrowed as she recognized that the marks weren't random. There was a pattern that she strained to pick out. "Is this a symbol or special mark of some kind?"

Kal couldn't take it anymore, the burning inside threatening to erupt to the surface again. He covered her hands with his and brought them up to kiss each of her palms. He forced a smirk to his face and his eyes tinged with red, the effects of the ring encased meteor rock. Pulling her upper body forward against him, he circled her with his arms and lowered his face to hers, a breath away. "I'm not really in the mood to talk about family right now," he told her and then captured her lips again.

Her arms came up and circled his neck and she leaned against his chest. Kal's hands dropped to her waist and then gently, softly and ever so slowly slid down to the round globes of her bottom. Lois moaned as he squeezed gently and her hands fisted in his hair. She started to ease closer to the edge of the counter, Kal's hands helping to slide her closer towards him.

"Well, I tried to leave you some hot water and...oops!"

Coop's voice caused Kal to pull back and Lois to jump. She buried her head in his chest, letting her hair fall forward to hide her face like a curtain. Kal chuckled slightly and her cheeks flamed in embarrassment. She felt him grab his shirt and she pulled back, running one hand over her face and the other brushed her hair back slightly, her eyes avoiding looking at either of the men.

"Look, I…I didn't mean to interrupt. I was just on my way out and thought you might want to know that the bathroom was free. I'm sorry," Coop apologized, his grizzled cheeks turning red, but his eyes twinkled as they met Kal's. He put his coat on and moved to the door.

Kal followed him, leaving Lois where she was. "Here, let me walk you out, Coop."

As they reached the door, Kal opened it for the old man, effectively hiding them from Jo's sight. "Listen, Kal, I really am sorry about interrupting things with your lady friend," Coop told him. Then he grinned, his teeth, or lack thereof, reminding Kal of the night they met. "But by the looks of things, it seemed you two already had a pretty wild time last night, eh?" he chuckled and nudged Kal.

"I've heard that gentlemen never kiss and tell, but she did stay the night. Jo's the first girl I've brought back here," Kal admitted.

"Well, I can see what you were waiting for. She's beautiful and she seems nice…feisty but nice. You two have fun and I'll catch ya later." Kal only smiled back as he closed the door after Coop.

Lois heard the voices murmuring on the other side of the door and glanced that way, her eyes skimming around the kitchen as she waited for Kal to come back. That's when her eyes landed on the clock on the microwave. 12:20 pm! The General would be back at the house in two hours! Leaping off the counter, she ran around the apartment to the other side of the wall, scrambling to find her own clothes. She found her dress and strapless bra thrown onto the floor, covering one boot. Her bladder chose at that moment to alert her to the fact that she hadn't yet answered nature's call that morning. She heard the front door close just as she closed the one to the bathroom.

Looking in the mirror, Lois about jumped out of her skin at her reflection. "My god, Lois, you look like hell! What in the name of all that is holy happened to you?" she asked herself quietly.

Knowing she was short on time, Lois quickly splashed some water on her face, unable to take care of all the mess that used to be her make up but getting rid of some of the smudges. She gargled with water, swishing it around in her mouth, changed from Kal's shirt to her dress, tried to run her fingers through her gnarled hair, pulled on the one boot she had been able to find and heard Kal calling her name.

"Jo? You ok? Coop's gone. It's just us now; you don't have to be embarrassed," he called through the door.

Yanking it open, Lois came barreling out, marching past him and looking around for her other boot. "Have you seen my other boot?" she asked, dropping to the floor to look under the bed.

Kal folded his arms over his chest, admiring her backside and the way her skirt rose up as she bent over to look under his bed. "In a hurry to leave all of a sudden?" he asked.

Glancing over her shoulder, Lois blushed as she realized where his eyes had been focused. She quickly sat back on her haunches, trying to smooth her skirt down. "Sort of. I just didn't realize it was so late and I'm supposed to meet someone in two hours across town. I've got to get home and shower…I'm sorry. I've just gotta go."

She saw her boot on the other side of the room and dove for it at the same time Kal did. He reached it first. Lois reached for it but he held it just out of her reach. "Stay. You can call your friend or whoever it is you're supposed to meet and reschedule."

Lois gave him a look of regret. "I'm sorry, Kal, but I can't. This is super important. I've gotta go for now."

"For now? So you'll meet me later? Tonight?" he asked, holding the boot closer but still out of reach.

Biting her lower lip, Lois hesitated. It was Sunday and the General had been gone for a couple of days, which meant he would be home for the night. The clock was ticking and she felt a little panic that she wouldn't be able to make it back to the base and stage everything to keep from raising her father's suspicions. As her eyes met Kal's, however, she knew he wouldn't let her go without an answer…_the_ answer he wanted.

"Today is Sunday. The club is closed tonight. Where do you want me to meet you?" she asked.

Smirking in triumph, Kal handed her the boot, which she quickly yanked on and stood to full height, smoothing down her dress. "How about I pick you up at your place?"

"No!" Lois almost shouted, her head shooting up. "I-I mean, I won't have time to clean up and it's just…it would just be better if I could meet you somewhere."

Kal thought her behavior a little odd, but knowing that he was short on time, decided to let it go for the moment. "All right. Well, why don't you just meet me here? What time?"

Lois moved for the door. "I'm not sure. I don't know how long my business this afternoon will take. I probably won't be able to be here before 9 this evening…maybe later." She reached the front door, grabbing her purse and throwing it over her shoulder as her other hand landed on the doorknob. Kal's hand landed over hers stopping her and she looked back up into his unusual eyes. "I'm sorry," she told him.

"You want a ride home? I can take you on the bike."

She shook her head. "No, I'll grab a cab. But thanks for the offer."

He lunged for her, capturing her mouth one more time, exploring her tongue and teeth with his tongue. His arms wrapped around her and she came willingly, her arms snaking around his shoulders. When Kal released her, she had to almost lean against the door to steady herself for a moment.

Grinning, Kal told her. "I'll wait for you, whenever you can get here."

Yanking the door open, Lois stepped out into the sunlight. "I'll be back as soon as I can. I promise."


	4. Chapter 4 - Back to Earth

**Close Encounters**

A/N: I'm so sorry, guys! I had no idea this would take so long but I had a lot of personal issues come up over the last few months. Just to let you know, I have messed with time a little here in using the song I did. It actually wasn't released until a few years later than this is set but it just fit too well and I loved it. Look it up and listen to it if you get a chance. It's called "Bittersweet Faith" by the group Bitter:sweet. I have started working on the epilogue already so it won't take as long to get out. All feedback and reviews are welcome and will make me work harder and faster. Thanks in advance.

Chapter 4 – Back to Earth

**The Lanes' housing unit, Fort Avelson, Sunday, 1:15 pm (and counting)**

The front door slamming shut was Chloe's clue that her cousin had finally decided to come home. She came flying out of Lois' bedroom, ready to wring her neck for making her worry but Lois' appearance made her stop short. The older cousin already had one boot off and was currently hopping on the bare foot while trying to pull off the other boot. She was missing an earring, her hair was a complete rat's nest, her makeup was smeared, and her dress was riding up to an embarrassing point if it hadn't been Chloe standing there.

"Lois, where the hell have you been?! Do you have any idea what time it is or how worried I've been? You could have called! You're lucky that you got back before your dad because the minute he asked me where you were, I would have had to tell him you were missing…" Chloe started berating her, catching her before she hit the floor as the boot finally came off.

"Chlo! I swear, I'll explain and I will owe you big but right now, I've got to get showered and it has to look like I've been here all night!" Lois interrupted her, grabbing up her boots and scurrying towards the bathroom.

Chloe heard the water running and a lot of movement and knew that this wasn't one of Lois' preferred marathon showers but the military precise, efficient shower that took her six and a half minutes, nine if she shampooed and conditioned twice, which she probably would if the way she looked when she came in was any indication.

Meanwhile, Chloe had quickly started the coffee pot and took a hard look around the home. Nope, it wouldn't do. It was too clean. There was no way the General would believe the two girls had been hanging around the house. Quickly, she scattered some DVD's around the TV, took a blanket and some socks and other paraphernalia and scattered them around the living room. Digging in her purse, she pulled out candy wrappers and stuffed a couple in the couch and left another one or two on the coffee table.

Lois came out of the bathroom in her robe, towel-drying her hair and looked at Chloe. Shaking her head, she tut-tutted at her. "No, no, that will never do! You can't be all dressed at 1300 hours if we spent the night chatting and watching TV. You need to change into some sweats or back into your pj's."

Chloe's eyes narrowed at that. "I've spent the night here before and we were dressed before now. What gives, Lo?"

"I don't have time to fix my hair so I match you in dress before the General gets here, so if I'm just getting out of the shower, you can't be too far ahead of me. Plus, I kinda told my father that you weren't feeling well and that was why we were home before curfew last night," Lois said, disappearing into the bedroom.

Chloe followed her, shedding her 'going out' clothes and looking through her things and Lois' for some sweats and a t-shirt. "Well, you were half right. One of us was in before curfew, barely," she muttered. "Lois, what happened to you last night? Where were you?"

Lois threw on a pair of jogging pants and a tank top. Running a comb through her hair, she struggled with what exactly to tell her cousin. "Well…Chlo…you see, I…uh…" She poured herself a cup of coffee and scrounged through the refrigerator for the flavored creamer.

Sipping on her own coffee, the blonde waited for her cousin's answer, knowing she was stalling but unsure why. Whatever she had to confess about last night must be good. Chloe leaned against the counter, her eyes not leaving her cousin's back.

At that moment, they both froze at the sound of a vehicle pulling up outside. Their eyes locked in panic and then they were in motion. Lois turned the coffee pot off, poured half of its contents down the sink and debated and then dismissed the idea of adding cold water to cool what was left in the pot. Chloe rushed to the couch, found the remote for the TV and turned it on to a corny, chick flick. She grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around her, lifting it just in time for Lois to dive under the other end at the opposite end of the couch.

They both tried to calm their breathing as they heard a key in the lock. They laughed, a little too forcefully, at something funny in the movie just as the door swung open and then General marched into the room. He looked tired but neither would dare say so. There were small bags under his eyes and his clothes were slightly less than pristine.

Lois looked up at her father and raised an eyebrow. When he started to give a sigh but cut it off with a grunt, she set her coffee mug down. He was in one of his moods and it could only go in one of two directions. Deciding to test the waters, she dropped her feet to the floor and made as if to stand.

"So…you waiting for us to come to attention?" she quipped.

Chloe's eyes widened and she had the sudden urge to dive for cover. Was Lois deliberately trying to start a war now? Her uncle had been gone on some assignment for a couple of days and he looked as if he could sleep for at least a full day and Lois wanted to take jabs at him? There were times when Chloe wondered if her cousin derived some kind of perverse pleasure from fighting with the General and her question was a good example of a reason for Chloe's suspicions.

Removing his coat and loosening his tie, Sam Lane let out a deep breath. "Not now, Lo. I've already been put through the wringer by our great country's dumbest and laziest. I don't need grief from you too."

Giving a short nod, Lois stood and took his jacket from him and held her hand out for his tie. "No need to be at the ready, General. All's quiet and peaceful on the home front," she said with a small, warm smile.

There were times when the General came in and he needed to fight out his frustrations and Lois was usually happy to oblige him and get him out of the funk as soon as possible. But there were other times, like this one, where he was genuinely tired and maybe even a little down in the mouth, where he would grunt at her once or twice, say something uncharacteristically nice, embarrassing them both, and then disappear into his bedroom for a couple of hours, or on rare occasions for the rest of the day or night.

Returning her smile with a tired one of his own, Sam patted her shoulder briefly. "I'm glad to hear it." He turned his attention to Chloe, causing her eyes to widen in panic, and cleared his throat. "At ease, soldier," he told her with a small gleam of amusement in his eyes at her obvious worry of finding herself the focus of his attention. "You feeling better, Chlo?" he asked.

The question caused Chloe's brow to furrow in confusion. "Feeling better?" she echoed. Glancing over at her cousin, she saw the deer-in-the-headlights look on Lois' face and quickly remembered Lois saying something about having told her father that she hadn't been feeling well and that was why they ended the night early.

Smiling up at her uncle, she gave a small nervous laugh. "Oh yeah! Much better. I think it was just one of those 24 hour things. Really nothing to worry about."

Sam Lane's eyebrows shot up in surprised confusion. "24 hour things?"

Now he was the one sounding like a parrot. His confusion only added to Chloe's and she looked to her older cousin for a rescue. The blonde's eyes begged for help and at the same time held suspicion. Just what had Lois told the General?

Lois jumped in. "Oh, General! You weren't supposed to let Chloe know that I told you!" she stage whispered to her father. "A girl doesn't exactly want her monthly issues announced to just anybody, especially any male members of the family."

Still not following, Chloe frowned at Lois, trying to figure out what she was talking about. When the light bulb went off, the shorter cousin gasped and her face flooded with color. Surely, she couldn't mean…there's no way she had told him…but as Chloe's eyes met her uncle's face and saw that he too seemed uncomfortable, she knew the truth and only barely held back a groan of embarrassment. She was going to kill Lois.

"Yes, well…" the General groped for words or some way to get control back over the situation. Only his daughter could knock him off balance like this. "As you were," he finally told them. He took his jacket from Lois and patted them both on the shoulder as he headed for his room.

The girls were as still as statues, only their eyes following Sam's movements. The door to his room clicked closed with him on the other side of it and they still remained frozen. It wasn't until they heard the water running in his bathroom that they seemed to thaw, and Chloe struck first, tossing a throw pillow from the couch at Lois and hitting her upside her head. They glared at each other for a millisecond, but knowing she was in the wrong, Lois was the first to look away.

"Lois! You told your father, a three-star general, that I wasn't feeling well because of…of…of women problems?! What did I ever do to deserve that kind of embarrassment from you?" Chloe hissed.

Flopping on the couch beside her, Lois shrugged and gave a sheepish grin. "It was the only thing I could think of that he wouldn't ask too many questions about. I'm surprised he brought it up at all."

They both sat there in silence for a moment, sipping their coffee. Finally, Chloe broached the subject of Lois' whereabouts again. "Lo, where were you? I really was worried about you. I didn't know what had happened to you."

Lois sighed and gave her an apologetic look. "I know, Chlo, and I'm sorry. I should have called."

She almost started to tell her about Kal but something held her back. She didn't want Chloe to freak out that she had stayed the night with a strange man but it was more than that. She wasn't entirely sure all they had done and that would make her cousin panic even more. Those were the reasons she told herself she couldn't tell Chloe about Kal, but there was a deeper truth. She wanted to keep him to herself for a while. She found she liked the idea of keeping her memories of last night, the ones she did have, a secret from everyone. It made it special and she couldn't wait to add to those memories. There was just something about Kal.

Glancing at Chloe over the rim of her mug, she saw that the blonde was waiting for an explanation. "It was really late when we left and I didn't want to wake you coming in and I wasn't sure I could get back on base in the state I was in without setting off alarms. So I crashed with a friend."

Chloe knew she was holding back but didn't want to push too much. "A friend? Was it Steve or Cass?" Then she gasped. "Oh my god! Was it Wes? Did you spend the night with Wes?"

Lois sighed and rolled her eyes. "Actually, if you don't mind, I think I'll keep who I stayed with a secret for now," she answered with a note of finality. And try as Chloe might, she couldn't get Lois to even give a hint as to who she had stayed with.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Kal sighed as he watched the city go by. He was bored. Jo had said she'd be late coming by and he hadn't felt like waiting around for her like a whipped pup. Not having a TV in the apartment left him without much to do other than stare at the walls. Unsure of what to do with the next few hours, he had found himself back on the elevated train. Now, however, all he could think about was Jo and that annoyed him.

The woman was a total stranger and quite frankly, though they had spent the night together, he was no closer to knowing her better. She dodged questions about herself almost with expert ease…and yes, somewhere in the back of his mind, he was well aware that he could be considered the pot to her kettle. What was it that she was afraid of? Why didn't she seem to want to tell him any details about herself? Was she that afraid of him or just being cautious?

The train came to a stop and he was lurched out of his moody thoughts. His eyes landed on one of the posters for a missing kid and he was reminded of the one with his own picture on it. Kal glanced up to see where he was currently stopped and his eyes landed on a pay phone. Squinting and tilting his head, he came to a decision and using his super-speed, he quickly obtained some change from someone getting onto the train and got off just as the doors closed.

Standing in front of the phone, Kal shifted from one foot to the other. Then, finally coming to a decision, he dropped the change in the slot and dialed the first phone number he had ever memorized. As the other end of the line rang, a glint of red on his right hand caught his attention and he suddenly didn't feel right having it on, not now. Slipping it off, he closed his eyes. They snapped open again as the ringing stopped with a click.

"You have reached the Kent residence. We're sorry we missed your call, but…"

Slamming the phone back on the cradle, Clark rested his forehead on his hands that were still clutching the receiver. He panted at the pain in his chest, but this time it wasn't from the scar burning. Hearing his father's voice had just brought back the look of pain and disappointment that had been on his face that day in the hospital the last time he had seen Jonathan Kent.

Clark fought back tears and when he got to the point where he was tempted to call back and listen to the entire answering machine message, he slipped the ring back on his finger. He closed his eyes as the red kryptonite stole through his system again. Unbeknownst to Clark, every time he re-exposed himself to the meteor rock the effects multiplied exponentially, making his conscience harder and harder to hear and the impulses to act on every thought that crossed his mind harder and harder to ignore. His eyes glowed red for a moment and Kal was back.

'Smallville and the Kents are your past. The world, starting with Metropolis, and women like Jo are your future,' Kal told his Clark side silently.

With no way to argue with the stronger side now in control, "Clark" was silent. Kal smirked in triumph and stood tall. Deciding that he needed to do some shopping, he super sped out of the train station. He wanted to get a gift for Jo.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**8:20 pm That Evening**

Lois flicked a glance at the clock and scowled. There was no way it was working correctly. Hadn't it been at least fifteen minutes since she looked at it last, not two? This was torture! Why did the General have to be in one of his "family time" moods tonight of all nights? She only just stopped herself from huffing in impatience.

"Your move, Lo," her father's gruff voice making her jump.

She huffed without noticing as she pretended to study the board. In reality, her mind was a long way from the game of chess they were currently playing. The General loved board games, especially chess, Battleship and Risk. Games of strategy and skill were the only kind allowed as she and Lucy were growing up. Sam Lane hated any game that relied on chance. He didn't believe in luck except the kind you made yourself and, much as Lois hated to admit it, she had adopted her father's views.

The first time Lois had beaten him at chess, they had both sat there stunned for a moment, staring at the board. Then their eyes slowly met and a smirk and gleam of satisfaction had stolen across her face. She had been 13. The General had gruffly congratulated her and then proceeded to beat the pants off of her for another three games. She didn't win again for almost a year and a half.

Biting her lip, Lois quickly made a decision, picked up a knight and moved it. When she let go of the piece, she glanced at the clock again. Her father cleared his throat rather loudly, drawing her attention to his face which was carefully blank. In his eyes, though, she read suspicion.

"Are you waiting for something to happen, Lo?" he asked casually.

"Waiting for something?" she echoed. She flashed him a brief smile. "What in the world would give you that idea?"

"You just put your queen in danger and I can beat you in two more moves. Your head hasn't been in the game and you keep glowering at the clock. You're obviously distracted by something," he pointed out.

Lois frowned. "No, no, not waiting for something per se…" she trailed off, searching for a plausible excuse for her behavior. "It's just that Chloe and I were up pretty late and…and she said she has a date tonight and wouldn't tell me anything about him."

Yeah, that was good. The General knew how protective she was of Lucy and her younger cousin. Plus, she really was a bit concerned about this date so there was an element of truth to it. Chloe had refused to tell her anything other than the guy was another intern at the Daily Planet. Lois had been able to trick her into saying his name once but it was only his first name so Lois hadn't been able to look anything up about him. What was his name? Lenny? Timmy? No, no, Jimmy…Jimmy was his name.

Sam Lane chuckled a little at the frustration and worry on his daughter's face. "I'm sure Gabe knows what he's doing if he's allowing her to go out with this kid," he reassured her with his words if not his tone. Then he looked at her sharply. "Gabe _does_ know about this date right? Your cousin isn't sneaking around with this guy right?"

Lois shrugged. "How should I know? I'm assuming he knows about it since she didn't seem particularly hush, hush about the date itself. She just said that she didn't want to tell me anything about _him_ until after the date so I couldn't say anything negative about him or try to talk her out of it."

Her father grunted and grimaced at the game board. "Well, then just let it alone, Lo. There is a difference between caring about her and sticking your nose in where it doesn't belong." He stood and stretched, yawning.

"You aren't quitting while you're winning are you?" Lois asked incredulously.

"It's no fun to beat you when you're tired and distracted," he teased with a small smile. The warmth of his tone and face was a rare gift to his older daughter. Patting her on the shoulder caused her to jump and he chuckled at still being able to confuse her with his actions. "Go to bed. I plan on doing the same. We've both been wearing ourselves thin the last couple of days."

Lois made a non-committal noise and waited until his bedroom door clicked shut. Then she swiftly put away the chess game and turned off the lights in the living area of the housing unit. Knowing she'd never be able to get out of the house using the front door, she dove for her bedroom, locking the door behind her. She had never in her life changed clothes as quickly as she did right then. Throwing her pajamas in one direction, she quickly pulled on some jeans and a white, button-up blouse, quickly applied some make-up, heavy on the mascara and eyeliner, and ran a brush through her long locks.

Glancing around the room, she groaned as she realized she had left her purse beside the couch. Lois unlocked the door and opened it a crack, eyes peering through the darkness to make sure the coast was clear. Dashing out, she grabbed her purse and was making a mad run back to her room when she slammed her foot into the coffee table. She cried out involuntarily and she saw the light come on under her father's door.

"Lo? That you?"

She sighed, hopping on one foot as she cradled her injured toe. She was just grateful that she had been wearing shoes. With the force of that impact, she might have broken it. "Yeah, General, it's me," she called out. "I was just getting a glass of water and stubbed my toe. I'm fine."

There was some grumbling on the other side of the door and the light went out. Sighing in relief, Lois listened with her bedroom door open for a few minutes until the only sounds left that she could hear was his snoring and the humming of the refrigerator. She silently reclosed and locked the door, made her way over to the window and threw open the sash. Tossing her purse outside into the bushes, she quickly followed after it, landing in a crouched position behind the shrubs.

"Alright, Lois, the easy part is over. Now for sneaking off the base and leaving a way to get back on," she muttered to herself. Maybe it was time for the therapy so many of her teachers had suggested for her.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Franklin Cooper was enjoying the summer night air as he pushed his cart along. He hummed to himself as he contemplated his shopping in the dumpsters. It was Sunday night and he had two days of good throwaways to go through. He knew where the dumpsters were that housed less "ick"-type garbage and more "wasteful" garbage. The bagel shop, for example, threw away day old bagels because they were told they had to. They always put them in clean, separate garbage bags just for people like him, "down on their luck". But Coop's luck was looking up.

He had a couple more stops he wanted to make before he went to Kal's place to wash his new-found treasures and take a shower himself. He counted himself lucky that he had made a friend in the young man. 'I just wish I could help him more. He seems…so guarded, so distant,' Coop thought to himself. Shrugging it off, he made his way over to a dumpster between two shops.

The light from a nearby streetlamp glittered off a small object at the curb and the sidewalk in front of the next building over and he picked up his pace as he made his way over to check it out. Grunting as he bent over to pick it up, he noticed that it was a woman's decorative hair comb. It looked to be made out of silver but he doubted it was real. Even still, he might be able to get a couple of dollars for it at his favorite pawn shop if Leon was feeling generous. He stuck it in his pocket and glanced up at the building he had stopped in front of. The sign for the club was tiny but he hadn't realized he had made it this far down the road already. Whistling off key, he continued on his way over to the dumpster that had been his originally planned stop.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

An hour later, Lois was silently berating herself over her stupidity. She had snagged a cab after hiking from the base to the edge of Metropolis proper but then realized that she hadn't paid attention to where Kal lived. She had been riding on the back of his bike on the way there, her head ducked to minimize the damage to her hair and her eyes closed in the wind or her nose had been drinking in the scent of him with her eyes closed. Then her nerves had kept her from paying attention to anything around them when they had arrived. She had let him lead her up to his apartment.

Now she was standing outside of the closed _Atlantis_ and wondering where to go from there. She wasn't even sure which direction his apartment was from there as they had gone to the zoo first. Her cell phone said that 10 o'clock was fast approaching and she had no idea what Kal's last name was, what his phone number was or how to find him. All she knew was the night club she was leaning against.

"Not your brightest shining moment, Lane," she mumbled, her eyes darting around as she tried to figure out what to do now.

Lois pushed off the wall and started pacing, moving closer to the street on the sidewalk as she went. After a moment, she heard a small clink and felt something under the edge of her sneaker. Looking down, she almost cried out as she recognized the object. It was one of the combs she had had in her hair last night. They had been her mother's…real sterling silver, and her father had allowed her to start wearing them when she was 14 after making her promise to take good care of them. She felt ashamed to realize that she hadn't even noticed she was missing them. For several minutes, she looked around, trying to find the mate to the one in her hand but finally concluded that it must have been lost and could be anywhere between here, the zoo and Kal's place.

The thought of Kal brought her back to her predicament and what she would do about it. Sighing, she decided there was nothing _to_ do but go home and try to make it to the club tomorrow night and hope that Kal would be there and in a forgiving mood. She had just resigned herself that that would be her only possible course of action when she spotted a familiar looking older man digging through a nearby dumpster. Lois' eyes narrowed as she wracked her brain trying to remember the hobo's name. She stuffed the comb in her back pocket and made her way over to him.

"Hey," she called out. He jumped and she scolded herself. You didn't just yell out at someone on the streets in the middle of the city at night. She moved into a patch of light cast by a nearby streetlamp and smiled at him. "It's L…Jo. Remember me?" she asked brightly.

The old man squinted at her but then his expression became open and friendly and he grinned showing the gaps where his teeth should be. "Sure! Jo! You're Kal's friend!" he exclaimed.

Lois found his grin to be contagious and answered it with one of her own. "Yeah, that's right. Erm…I'm sorry, I don't…"

"Coop! The name's Coop," he reminded her kindly. "Whatchya doing out here? The club is closed on Sunday nights."

"Yeah, I know," Lois told him sheepishly. She was grateful for the darkness as a blush stole up her neck and over her face. "See, the thing is…I can't remember how to get to Kal's place. I rode with him on the back of his bike getting there and I wasn't paying attention…and I had to leave in a hurry this morning, or afternoon rather, so…"

Coop started chuckling but the situation hit him so funny that it quickly turned into a hacking laugh that turned into a cough. Lois pounded his back a couple of times until he held up a hand that he was ok. Finally, he straightened and looked around, wrapping his hands around a raggedy old shopping cart. Pushing it behind the dumpster, he pulled a cardboard box in front of it to help hide it in the shadows.

Turning back to Lois, Coop grinned again. "I'll take you there. It's not far from here, actually and I was planning on heading there myself. I could do with a sandwich if he has anything in the place decent to eat."

They started off and Lois glanced at the old man, waiting for him to say something but it seemed he was content with silence as they walked along. Finally, the quiet was getting to her and she decided to break it. Clearing her throat, she asked, "So…how long have you and Kal been friends?"

He grunted. "I'm not sure you'd call us _friends_," he answered after a second. "We met on the el and he helped me with my cart. I gave him a couple of dollas and he bought me a hamburger. He lets me take a shower or grab a bite to eat at his place now and again, but that's about the extent of our relationship. What about you two kids? You known him long?"

Lois smiled and blushed again. He was the first guy she could remember who could make her blush without even being around. "Actually, we met briefly at that club back there about a month ago but reconnected at the club again last night. I really don't know him at all…but…there's just something about him…" He grinned at her, his eyes twinkling and she coughed. "Sorry. I don't usually…"

"S'okay, missy! There must be somethin' about you too because you're the first girl I've seen him bring to that apartment and the first one I even heard him mention. You must be the one he was talking about that night after you first met. He went back to that club again and again and I figured it must be to find a gal that had caught his eye." He sighed. "Ah, young love."

Coop stopped in front of a high rise and waved up at it. "Welp, here we are! Shall we?" he asked waving at the building again, this time in the direction of the elevator.

The elevator doors were almost closed when Coop suddenly got off. "Say, totally forgot about the friend I was ta meet. Sorry, Jo. Maybe you could tell Kal hi for me," he said as he walked away, chuckling.

"But…" Lois started to protest but the doors were closed and the elevator moving before she could get more than the one word out.

When they opened again, she walked out of the elevator and over to the door to Kal's apartment. Lois took a deep breath and knocked. There was no answer and she felt that her nerves had led to a moment that was a little anticlimactic. She raised her hand to knock again but then, when she didn't hear anything from inside, changed her mind and decided maybe to come back tomorrow.

Just as Lois had turned to walk back to the elevator, the door was yanked open from the inside. She whipped around to find Kal standing there, arms crossed over his chest. "You're late."

Two words from Kal, along with his blank expression, had her shoving her hands into her back pockets and frowning. She rocked up and down from her heels to the balls of her feet. She wanted to apologize but something about his demeanor rubbed her the wrong way and she was tired. So Lois shrugged instead. "I told you I might be. I had some things I had to do." Realizing that it wouldn't be good for both of them to be in a bad mood, she decided to see where flirting would get them.

She bit her lip and flashed a small smile up at him. "But I'm here now." When he didn't say anything for a full minute, didn't even seem to move, she shrugged again but her eyes skittered away from his face. Lois didn't want him to see the hurt his lack of reaction was causing and it was fairly obvious to her that he didn't really want her there. So she turned around with the full intention of getting back in the elevator and returning home. A hand lightly gripping her shoulder stopped her.

"Where are you going?" he asked as he turned her to face him.

Lois looked up into his face but it was too dark and she couldn't make out his expression. Her eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms over her chest. "You didn't seem all that happy to see me. I don't usually stick around in places where I'm not welcome," she said, keeping her tone carefully neutral.

Kal's hand slid from her shoulder down her arm and gently pried her arms apart. Taking her hand, he tugged her to the apartment, smirking down at her. "If I didn't want you here, I wouldn't have opened the door at all."

Giving him a small smirk of her own in triumph, she moved ahead of him into the apartment and waited while he closed the door. Suddenly, Lois was nervous again and she bit her lower lip in anticipation of what he would do next. She didn't have to wait long. Kal moved around her, his fingers gliding gently around her waist, to stand in front of her and then gathered her in his arms. "I _am_ glad you're here," he told her, his voice husky.

The shadows must have been playing tricks on her because Lois could have sworn she saw his eyes glow red for a moment as he bent his head to capture her lips with his. His lips were gentle and welcoming at first but they quickly turned heated. Finally, when the kiss started to turn up the temperature in the room to almost unbearable proportions, Lois pulled back. She rubbed his chest and smiled up into his eyes.

"Whoa. Let's slow down a little. There's no need to rush. I'm not planning on going anywhere," she told him softly, choosing her words carefully. She wasn't _planning_ on going anywhere but the truth was she wasn't sure she was ready for things to go too far between them. Part of her was afraid that her missing memories might inspire Kal to want more from her than she was willing to give tonight.

Kal smiled and nodded and she let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. He rubbed his hands up and down her back for a moment before slowly pulling back. Pecking her on the lips and then her nose, he looked into her eyes. They were so beautiful and he felt, if he let himself, he could easily get lost in those eyes.

"I've got something for you," he told her. When she looked at him questioningly and started to say something, he placed a finger over her lips. "Don't ask. Wait here and I'll go get it." He kissed her again. "Don't move."

She couldn't help the grin that spread over her face. Lois wasn't one for long-term surprises. She hated when her birthday or Christmas came around because the anticipation over what presents were coming would just about have her coming unglued. And not only with her own presents. If there were some kind of surprise going on for someone, she had to be in on it…period. But if she had no idea it was coming, no hint at all, until right before it happened…well then, she loved surprises!

It was one of the few things about her that consistently had her father chuckling and it was an ongoing battle between them. He was determined once in a while to get the upper hand in surprising her and she was just as determined to find out about them ahead of time and then act surprised later. The General considered it a war game. Lois considered it something similar to one of Chloe's investigations and, while she'd never tell her blonde cousin, she often thought she might be pretty good as a reporter herself. Maybe it had something to do with the number of times she had been able to break into the General's offices…or maybe it had something to do with the number of times she had surprised him by announcing when and where they were moving before he could.

Just as Lois was starting to get impatient, Kal returned with his hands behind his back and a gleam in his eyes. His smile was contagious and Lois matched it with one of her own. She made a half-hearted attempt to see what was in his hands but he easily dodged her. She tried the other way and then quickly ran around his back. Kal moved his hands to be in front of him and when she tried to grab hold of his wrist and hold it where she could see what was in his hand, he raised his hand over her head and shook a small box in wrapping paper with a red bow.

"What's the occasion?" she asked, feigning disinterest for a minute and hoping he would drop it in her hands.

Kal shrugged and kept the box over her head. "Think of it as a belated birthday present." Her eyes lit up and he laughed as she jumped for it a couple of times, missing it by so many inches, it might as well have been a mile above her.

"You'll have to do better than that, Jo," he chuckled, his eyes holding a flirtatious gleam.

Getting frustrated, Lois almost stomped her foot. Instead, as a plan popped into her head, she put her hands behind her back and gave him a coquettish smile. She tilted her head toward the right and leaned toward him but didn't actually touch him. "May I have my surprise please?" she asked sweetly.

He pretended to be contemplating it, looking towards the ceiling and then pursing his lips. "Hmm, I don't think so. Try again."

Raising an eyebrow, she rested her hands on his chest and slid them up slowly towards his shoulders. "Pretty please?"

Kal shook his head. Biting back a laugh, Jo slid her hands up and around his neck, one hand threading into the hair at the base of his neck, causing him to shiver slightly. As she stood up on her tip toes, she raised her lips towards his. Kal felt his heart skip a beat. This felt right like nothing else ever had. For the first time in his life, he wasn't worried about normal or his destiny, or even, God forbid, Lana Lang. His eyes fluttered closed and he dropped his arms around her waist, his lips skimming hers.

Then she started to giggle and skipped out of his arms. As Kal came to his senses and his eyes opened, he chuckled. Maybe another man would have been angry at her game but he found her toying with him amusing…and a turn on. He reached for her to pull her back to him, but she stayed out of reach, laughing and waving the present at him. He nodded at her and held up his hands to let her know that he wouldn't try to stop her.

Ripping into the package, Lois didn't even bother to hide her excitement. She threw the paper over one shoulder and let the bow flutter to the floor. As she held up her gift, she frowned in concentration as she studied it for a minute. Then her grin returned, bigger than before. Holding the two CD cases in her hands, she laughed and threw herself into his arms. Kal staggered back slightly so that she wouldn't hurt herself but caught her around the waist again.

"These are great! How did you know…?" She shook her head at herself. "The club, of course. I told you…" She looked up into his blue-green eyes and smiled, her arms moving up around his neck again. "I love them! Thank you!"

Jo kissed him but Kal could feel her excitement and chuckled between kisses. Pulling back, he asked, "Would you like me to put one of those on? I just picked up a killer new stereo this afternoon."

Her expression brightened so much that Kal thought it rivaled the sun. "That would be great!" When he gestured for her to pick which one she wanted to hear, she looked from one hand to the other. "Umm…this one!" She handed him one of the two CD cases he had gotten for her and was surprised when she realized that each of the cases held two CDs each.

As the sounds of White Snake floated on the air, Lois stepped over to her purse that she had thrown on one of the barstools and tucked the "Best of the 80s Hair Bands" into it. When she felt Kal's hand take hers and tug it gently, she turned to face him and smiled. "I believe this was the song we first danced to. Am I right?" he asked with a grin. She nodded and he tugged her to him. "I believe a repeat performance is in order…with your permission of course."

Lois chuckled and nodded again, moving her body to the music. "Absolutely." From now on, anytime she heard White Snake, she would forever associate them with Kal and that club. That was just fine by her, and she hoped he would be there in the future to listen to them with her.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**Monday morning, 7:30 am**

Lois quickly tied her sneakers and reached for her purse. Slinging it over her head to rest on her diagonally, she dug out a brush and ran it quickly through her dark locks, pulling them back into a ponytail. It had been a fun night. They had laughed and danced and eaten pizza and drank beer until they were almost sick, or at least until she was almost sick. The last thing she remembered before waking up, fully clothed, in his arms in bed was swaying gently in his arms in the living area.

Lois was facing away from the bed and didn't realize that Kal was awake. She almost jumped out of her skin as she felt his arm snake around her waist and pull her back to the bed. He kissed the side of her head, moved her hair aside and kissed her ear, behind her ear, along her jaw and then made his way down her neck. She let out a small moan and her eyes slid closed. Tilting her head to the other side to give him better access, Lois almost allowed herself to fall under his spell.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, however, the alarm bells went off again and a very clear picture of an angry father in full uniform flashed in her mind. Lois wrenched away from him and Kal groaned. Turning to face him, she gave a soft chuckle. "Sorry, Kal, but I have to go. I wish I could stick around but…" her words trailed off and she shrugged helplessly. The truth was, she felt it too…this connection between them. It ran far deeper than it should have for two people who had only spent less than a handful of days together.

"Call in sick," he told her huskily, reaching out to her to try to pull her back into his arms. "Let's spend the day together."

Lois sighed. Kal was assuming that she had a job to get to and she wasn't about to correct him. Shaking her head, she moved towards the front door. "I can't! Kal, I'm sorry but I really have to go for now."

Kal jumped out of the bed and followed her, hurrying to move between her and the door. Placing his hands on her shoulders, he allowed them to run up and down her upper arms. He looked into her eyes and gave her a smile that could melt butter, trying to persuade her to stay with him. "Come on. You never play hooky?" he asked. The light was playing tricks on her again, making it look as though his eyes were ringed with red.

'If you only knew,' Lois thought to herself. The General would be home today and after having been gone for several days and not doing anything much yesterday, she knew he would demand they spend the day cleaning the housing unit. He would be pounding on her bedroom door in less than half an hour.

Smiling, Lois placed her hands on his chest and leaned up to peck his lips. "Of course I do occasionally." He grinned and she knew he thought he had just won. She moved quickly around him and yanked open the front door to the apartment. "I just can't today." At his pout, she laughed and shook her head. "Ok, ok. Tell you what, I'll meet you at the club later tonight."

"When?" he demanded, holding her wrist so she couldn't leave without giving him an answer.

"I'm not sure of exactly what time I can get there but the club doesn't even open until 7:30." Lois tried to pull her wrist loose and huffed a little in exasperation when Kal held tight.

"When?"

Cutting off a sigh, she finally blurted out, "Nine, ok? I'll be there sometime between nine and nine-thirty."

Nodding, he yanked her to him, causing her to let out a small yelp of surprise. He kissed her soundly until she let out a moan and grabbed at the hair at the nape of his neck. Pulling back, he chuckled and set her away from him outside. "I'll be waiting." Just to keep her on her toes, he shut the door between them, laughing again at the puzzled look on her face.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Lois panted as she held her side and bent over at the waist, resting her hands on her knees. She had run most of the way back to the base and had been holding her breath off and on as she stealthily moved back to her window. Now that she was here, she made a note to get back into her regular exercise routine and she really did need to stop the smoking. She grimaced at that thought. She hated that something as small as a cigarette had power over her. She never should have taken up the nasty habit in the first place but she had done it to defy her father and out of curiosity and now look where it had her.

Shaking her head to clear it of the thoughts running through her mind, Lois listened for a moment just below her window to see if the General was pounding on the door. Satisfied when she heard nothing, she removed her purse from across her torso and tossed it up and over the sill. The housing unit was only one story but it did have a crawl space to allow access to plumbing and for storage and the ground sloped below her bedroom window, placing it high enough that she had to pull herself up into the room.

She silently looked around, staying crouched behind the shrubbery, making sure that no one was around. When she was satisfied, Lois turned to the wall and clamped her hands on the edge of the sill. She grunted as she pulled herself up and leaned into the room. She had more than half of her body inside when a hand grasped her arm.

"Here, let me assist you," came a gruff voice as two hands yanked her into an unceremonious heap on the floor.

Lois gasped and her eyes shot up into the face of her father who did not look pleased. He folded his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow, his jaw clenching and unclenching. "Well, soldier? I believe explanations are in order."

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**One week later, Metropolis, Club **_**Atlantis**_**, 9:45 pm**

Kal took a big gulp of his drink while his eyes darted around the dance club. He was back to standing in the shadows, the music so loud the floor vibrated beneath his feet. Several women eyed him and threw seductive looks his way, but he ignored it all. He was waiting, just as he had every night for the past week…waiting for her. And he was getting pretty damn tired of waiting for her.

There had been no word from Jo since she had left his apartment Monday morning. He had asked Coop about her when he mentioned her on Tuesday when he stopped by for the usual food and a shower. He had even tried riding the trains during the day, especially the one that he had first seen her on with her friend. There had been no sign of her. If he didn't know better, he might have thought that he had made her up.

Kal had gone from confusion to worry to anger and back again as more time passed and there was still no word from Jo. Now he nursed his temper and bruised ego while deflecting unwanted female attention. He made his way over to the bar as he realized his pal Andy was working tonight. Maybe _he_ had seen or heard from Jo.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

Lois almost growled in frustration as she glared at her father's retreating form through the window. Hearing a sigh from behind her, she answered it with one of her own. She let the blinds fall back into place and turned to face her babysitter for the night. At least this one would talk to her…she hoped. The last two guys and the one woman, all of various ranks, her father had left in charge had had absolutely no sense of humor.

She tried one of her biggest smiles that usually melted this particular sitter's resolve pretty quickly. Her smile went unanswered and she sighed again. Maybe he wouldn't talk to her. She knew he was pretty upset.

"How about some poker?" she asked brightly. "We could order pizza. The General has a couple of brews in the fridge, and we could…"

"Stop, Lois! Just stop!"

Lois jumped at the tone in his voice. It was a combination of frustration, anger and disappointment. While she could understand somewhat and felt guilty knowing that she was the cause, she also found herself reacting the same way that she did to her father…guilt was there yes, but also hurt, anger, rebellion and even resentment. Resentment because she already had a father; she didn't need him to act like one too, but also resentment because, up until the last couple of months, she had seen this man in a completely different role. It was amazing the changes that a total stranger had made in her. Truthfully, she had no idea if they were good changes or bad. Maybe it was still too early to tell yet.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" she snapped back, folding her arms over her chest.

"What's wrong with me?! Lois, your dad calls me into his office and says that he needs me to do him a favor, only he doesn't _ask_ it, he tells me like I have no choice in the matter. But that doesn't bother me really, because let's face it, I'd never be able to turn General Sam Lane down anyway. Then he tells me this story of catching his daughter climbing back in her window after being out all night…in his words, 'doing God knows what with God knows who, only God knows where'. Then he tells me he needs me to babysit his daughter to make sure that she didn't try to do take off again while he took care of some business for a couple of evenings. He made it pretty clear that it was a favor he expected me to take care of and not screw it up," her sitter told her.

"Pretty uninteresting story really," Lois sniffed. Catching herself biting her thumbnail, she stuffed her hands in her pockets and glared at her companion. "It isn't one I haven't already heard, Wes…ad nausea from the General. What's your point?"

"My point?! Lois, you're 17 years old! I know you think you're all grown up and everything but you're still a kid! Sneaking out and staying out all night and then not answering your father's questions…" he started, jumping off the couch and starting to pace. "And now you want me to…"

"I sure hope you didn't think of me as a kid back in Germany because your actions would be even more questionable don't you think?" she bit out, causing him to pale and then turn scarlet. Lois sighed and refolded her arms over her chest. "You know, Wes, as you mentioned, I already have a father. I don't need _you_ acting like one."

"That was a little below the belt, Lo," Wes told her softly, rubbing a hand down his face. When she only shrugged and raised her eyebrows at him, he shook his head and stood up. Blowing out a breath, he moved over to stand in front of her. "And it was for me, too. Look, I'm sorry, LoJo. You know I don't think of you as a kid. I'm just not sure how to handle this situation here. I mean, you and I have been friends for years now, but you know I look up to your father like he was my own. I don't want to disappoint him and I don't know how to not take sides here."

Seeing the pleading look in his eyes, Lois almost relented and let Wes off the hook but one word out of his little spiel caught her attention. She kept her own expression carefully blank and studied his face for a moment, her arms staying crossed. "Friends, huh?" she said softly. "That's really how you see us, isn't it?"

Clearing his throat and reddening somewhat, Wes' eyes darted around for a second before coming back to hers. "Yeah, LoJo, that's how I see us," he answered with a nod. When she only blinked at him, he waited a beat before adding, "I'm sorry, Lois. I know that I led you to believe that…that we were more than that and I truly don't want to hurt you, but I-I just can't be more than that…with you." He looked into her eyes and took a deep breath. "You see, I-I've met someone…"

Up until his last few words, Lois had thought she was handling Wes' words well. It wasn't even all that surprising really. She had suspected he felt this way ever since they had met again here in Metropolis. That last bit, though…that she had definitely _not_ seen coming. She held up a hand for him to stop and closed her eyes, sighing. Resting her fingertips on her forehead, she took a deep breath to gather her thoughts before lifting her head again.

Wes tried again. He placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed lightly. "Lo, I'm sorry. I really never meant to hurt you."

Lois finally gave him half a smile. "It's ok, Wes. I kind of thought this was coming." At his skeptical look, she shook her head slightly. "I mean, I _am_ surprised that you met somebody and haven't told me before now, but I could tell you were pulling away from me and trying to put us back to friends again." She patted one of his hands with hers and he took it in his hand and squeezed it. She squeezed back. "I was hurt at first but I'm really ok with it now."

Tilting her head, Lois' smile grew a little larger and warmer. "But I don't regret what happened between us in Germany. I know I probably should and that you probably do, but I know my rebellious side when it comes to my father. He had just overheard one of the guys on the base talking about the sexy daughter of a certain American general and it led him to try to lecture me about being with a guy…or rather _not_ being with a guy…and you know how I get."

Wes chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, nobody tells Lois Lane what to do. She's just going to do the exact opposite. She gets that independence from her father I believe."

She thought about it for a minute but then slowly shook her head. "Actually, the General always says I get my '_defiant nature'_ from my mother's side of the family. He'll say that he brought it out in her too. Stubbornness and _independence_ comes from both sides. I was screwed from the minute those two sets of genes were put together," she said with a grin. He laughed with her at that.

Then Lois sobered. "Honestly, though, Wes, I was determined to be with someone after he ordered me not to be and I'm just grateful that someone as kind, caring and considerate as you was there for my first time. I know it might seem kind of weird to say this but…thank you."

Giving her a warm smile, Wes pulled her into a hug. He rocked them back and forth for a moment before pulling back and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. "You're welcome, LoJo. I hope this means we can still be good friends."

"You sure you want to be my _friend_? Cause you're acting more like my father every day," she told him with a smirk. "What's with the stick in the mud routine? It's like you've forgotten how to have fun. I get the whole wanting to protect people you care about routine, but honestly, how much trouble do you think I'll get myself into? It's not like I put myself in life or death situations."

Wes narrowed his eyes to slits. "Forgotten how to have fun, huh?" When she just raised an eyebrow, he growled. "Fine. You get the cards, I'll order the pizza."

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**Another week later…**

Coop pushed his cart down the alley and parked it on the far side of the dumpster. He hummed to himself tunelessly as he shifted the contents around. He made a happy shout of triumph as he found a pair of men's slippers that looked like they would fit him and hardly worn. As he reached down to pull off one of his old boots, he heard a small crash from deeper in the alley.

Straightening immediately, the old man squinted into the darkness. "Hey!" he called. "Anybody there?"

When he heard a cat cry, he shook his head and turned back to his original task. Coop had just managed to pry his boot off and slide on the slipper when he heard another sound from behind him. Spinning around, he saw three young men, probably in their late teens or early twenties, covered in tattoos and piercings. As Coop looked them all over hesitantly, he recognized one of the tattoos all of them shared, a symbol for one of the local gangs.

"Hey, old man, find anything worth a s***?" one of them asked. He had stepped forward and appeared to be the leader.

One of the others, the taller of the two, pulled out a switch blade and pretended to be cleaning his nails with it. Coop followed his movements with his eyes and held up his hands. "Listen, boys, I don't want any trouble. As you can probably tell, I'm not exactly rolling in money so I'll ask that you kindly leave me be."

"Hey, guys! Look what we have here! Seems the old man has been _shopping_," the shorter sidekick called from the side of the dumpster.

"That's my cart!" Coop exclaimed, forgetting the danger he was in for the moment in his haste to protect the few belongings he had.

The taller youth shoved Coop from behind, causing him to stumble and laughed along with shorty, who shoved him back again. The old man grunted and protested, trying to get at his cart. Finally, the leader stepped forward. Flicking his own knife open, he silenced his companions with a bark.

"Enough!" He turned to the older hobo and held his knife up. "Now, old man, we're gonna see just what all you got for us tonight. Hopefully, it'll be enough to buy you safe passage outta this alley." Franklin Cooper's eyes widened and he knew he was in trouble.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**Club **_**Atlantis**_

Kal quickly caught the hand that was starting to wander a little too far into dangerous territory for his tastes. At the blonde's pout, he smirked and spun her away from him and then back again and she giggled. Her red-headed friend behind him bumped hips with him and he twirled her with his other hand. The song's beat kept them moving and he easily kept up with it.

The alcohol, music, and women didn't affect him like he wished and he found himself playing with the ring, squeezing his hand every now and then, hoping for the red kryptonite to work its magic on his darkening mood. It seemed no matter how he tried, he couldn't get Jo out of his head. Here he was, on the dance floor with two beautiful, and willing, women and all he could think about was the dark haired smoker who had stood him up two weeks ago.

Angry at himself for allowing his thoughts to stray back to Jo, Kal silently berated himself and left the two girls on the dance floor. Without a word of explanation or apology, he walked away and headed out the door, leaving the two looking at each other in confusion. Ignoring the call of the valet to get his latest acquired vehicle, he decided to walk back to his apartment, thinking the exercise might do him good.

Kal had just stopped beside a pay phone, debating whether to call the Kent farm again or not, when he heard something coming from the alley across the way. He decided to investigate and sped over to the entrance of the alley. There were three young men messing with a fourth person who he couldn't see for the others in the way. He didn't think about it or question it, but acted on instinct.

"Hey! Leave him alone!" he called out to them.

The leader of the three youths had been holding his knife to Coop's side as the taller of his companions, stood behind the older man. Shorty had been in the process of turning over the shopping cart. At Kal's call, the startled youths panicked. The tall one shoved Coop forward and the old man's eyes widened in shock. The young leader's face matched Coop's. Stepping back, the youth hesitated only a moment before racing out of the alley, his companions close on his heels.

Kal saw the man left behind drop to the pavement and moved to check on him. "Sir, are you alright?" he asked as he knelt down and turned the man over so he was face up. His shock was written all over his face as he looked down into the old bum's. "Coop?"

"Kal!" the old man wheezed out.

Kal was no doctor but he could tell Coop's breathing didn't sound right. He felt a sticky substance on the old man's jacket and didn't need light to know that it was blood…a lot of blood and the stain was growing. He placed his hand over the wound and pressed down, trying to staunch the flow.

"We've got to get you to a hospital," he told the old man and started trying to help him to his feet.

Coop let out a cry and grabbed a fist full of Kal's shirt. Shaking his head, he puffed out, "No! Stop!" He panted for a second and it seemed his breathing was getting more labored. Looking up into the younger man's face, his eyes crinkled as he tried to smile. "I don't think we're gonna make it to the hospital, Kal."

Kal blinked back tears, the first he had ever had to fight with the red kryptonite on. "Ok, so if I can't move you, I'll just run over to the pay phone and call an ambulance. It's just right over…"

"Kal…son, it's getting harder to breathe and I'm starting to lose feeling in my left arm. I'm not gonna make it through this," Coop told him seriously. When Kal started to protest, he shook his head and coughed, some blood spilling across his lips. "Look, I don't have any family to speak of or anything, so I want you to have my stuff. It ain't much, and I don't really want to know what you'll do with it but it's yours."

"Coop, don't talk like that. You're going to be fine; we just have to get you to the hospital and the doctors will fix you right up," Kal told him, sniffing a little.

"It's been nice knowing you the brief time I have. You're a nice kid, Kal. I wish we could have gotten to know you better." The old man coughed and he turned loose of Kal's shirt to cover his mouth. In between coughs, he managed to wheeze out, "Got something…in my…right jacket pocket. Didn't…didn't want someone…to steal it from my cart. Get it…out for me."

The young man pulled an object out of the pocket Coop indicated and tried to turn it to the light to see what it was. When his friend coughed again, he decided figuring out what it was could wait and stuffed the object into his own pocket. "Coop, you've got to try to let me help you. I can't just…"

He shook his head again. "Kal, stop. Just promise…" his voice dropped in power and volume. "Just promise that you won't stay alone. Find that pretty young lady that you met at the club. No one should be alone. Take it from me, Franklin Cooper, the old bum nobody will remember."

"That's not true, Coop. I can promise you that I'll never forget you," Kal told him sincerely. Tears ran unheeded down his face. "You're the first friend I made here in Metropolis."

Coop smiled at his young friend and patted the side of his face twice and smiled. "Thank…thank you," he whispered.

His eyes drifted shut, there were a couple more wheezes and then a shudder and he went limp. Kal checked his breathing and listened for a heartbeat, putting his ear to the old man's chest, but he was gone. Hanging his head, Kal battled with the anger and pain that burned within him. Tilting his face to the sky, he cried out.

"I wasn't even allowed one friend?! Why send me here with all these people if I'm always meant to be alone?" he raged. Kal's eyes glowed red and he gasped as the scar on his chest burned.

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**A week and a half later, Fort Avelson**

Chloe dropped onto the chair like a sack of potatoes. "But…you guys haven't even been here for three months! You're leaving already? I thought…"

Lois sighed and shrugged, pretending to be blasé about the whole thing but inside, she was hurting too. This should be easier; after all, this should have just been another stop on the map for her. She should be used to moving at the whims of either one Sam or the other, Uncle or father. But the truth was, this time was different. One of the big reasons was her blonde cousin currently sitting on her bed. The other was a tall, dark and handsome stranger that she couldn't put out of her mind, no matter how hard she tried.

"It's not like I have a choice in this, Chlo. The General has his orders and I have mine. You know this is how it works. I hate it, but that's my life right now," Lois said, sitting down next to her. "I hope at some time in the near future, I can find some way to get settled somewhere. I _hate_ never feeling like I have a home. Mom used to be able to make each new place feel like home but then we were a real family then and the assignments didn't move us as frequently."

Chloe smiled at her sympathetically, throwing an arm around her cousin's shoulders. "I'm sorry. I don't want to bum you out. I know this isn't easy for you. It's just I'm going to miss you. I had gotten used to having you around."

Smiling, Lois bumped Chloe's side gently. "Yeah, I'm gonna miss you too. It was nice having a little sister around again. Even if she has been too busy being a hot shot reporter to spend much time with me."

Chloe cleared her throat and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well, I'm not sure that's going to last too much longer," she mumbled. She had never been able to bring herself to tell the cousin she looked up to just how she had acquired the internship at the Planet.

Lois pulled back slightly to be able to look in Chloe's eyes. "What? Why? This doesn't have anything to do with that Timmy guy that never called does it, 'cause I'll march down to that newspaper and…"

"No, this has nothing to do with _Jimmy_," Chloe said with a blush. She wasn't entirely sure she should have told Lois _everything_ about her date that night several weeks ago. "He's not even there anymore. Honestly, I'd rather not talk about that right now."

"Which? Jimmy or the internship?"

"Either."

"Oh…ok. But you know if you ever want to…"

"Yeah, I know and I appreciate it."

A beat passed and then Chloe jumped up and threw her arms open wide. "So what do you want to do for the last couple of nights you're here? We could catch a movie, go to one of the museums, whatever you want to do."

At the immediate image of the night club and Kal at the bar, Lois shook her head. She couldn't do it. She couldn't leave without trying to see him again. She needed to at least try to explain why she had stood him up and to see if there was any way…no, she just needed to say goodbye and leave it at that.

Standing, Lois shoved her hands in her pockets and took a deep breath. "Actually, Chlo, I'd love to spend the night with you, but I also need a favor…a really big favor."

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**The next night, **_**Atlantis**_

Lois took a couple of deep breaths to calm her nerves as she looked up at the building across the way. Maybe she shouldn't have insisted that she could do this herself instead of letting Chloe come with her. "Get it together, Lois. You're a Lane," she muttered. Squaring her shoulders, she shook some of her hair out of her eyes and marched to the entrance of the club.

Once inside, she allowed a moment for her eyes to adjust to all the sights before trying to take in details. There were people everywhere. The music was loud and the temperature was up to sweltering. Biting her lower lip, Lois made her way over to the bar but there was a woman behind the bar that she didn't recognize. She had been hoping to find the same guy who had been working all the other times she had been there. She debated on ordering a drink but decided against it. Lois wanted to have a clear head tonight. No alcohol dulling her senses.

What was she doing here? What was it about Kal that drew her like it did? He was just a guy, an older guy, who probably had a dozen girlfriends all over the city. As she stood over by the bar, however, she couldn't stop her eyes from darting over the people on the dance floor. A song came on that was a little more mellow than the usual pounding.

**No regrets**

**Everything will work out fine**

"Hi, what can I get you?" the woman behind the bar asked.

"A sparkling water with lime please," Lois ordered with a warm smile. "Have you seen Kal around?" she asked hopefully.

A confused look came over the bartender's face. "I don't know a 'Kal'…but I just started two nights ago. If he's a regular, I wouldn't know." She smiled briefly before moving off to get the drink.

**We'll hold our breath,**

**Wait for another sign**

Lois scanned the crowd, at times standing on her tiptoes to see around this person or that. "Here you go," the woman said, setting the water on a napkin in front of Lois. She nodded her thanks and started to sip it, her eyes returning to the crowd.

**I've tasted**

**Your bittersweet faith**

**My heart aches for you**

Finally, as if in slow motion, the crowd parted and she spotted him on the dance floor. She wasn't sure how she knew it was him; it was dark after all, but she knew it was. And he wasn't alone. There was a woman with bright red hair draped all over him, and Lois felt her heart drop a little.

Taking a deep breath, she decided she had come this far she might as well see this through. She made her way through the sea of bodies over to where he was and waited for him to notice her.

**I'm taking**

**A moment to say**

**Everything I do**

**I do it for you**

**I do it all for you**

Kal felt as if someone was watching him and opened his eyes, glancing around for any possible reasons for the feeling. When his eye landed on the brunette not 10 feet away, he froze, causing his dance partner to look up at him questioningly. Kal couldn't pull his eyes from Jo, though and he felt a wave of varying emotions flow over him.

She waved at him and gave him half a smile. Raising an eyebrow, Jo flashed a pleading look and hesitatingly tried waving Kal over. He clenched his jaw and debated on it. The truth was, he was curious about what she had to say, but he was also angry. His pride, amplified by the kryptonite, cried out at the audacity of her showing up now.

**Lay your sweet**

**Tears across my broken dream**

Finally, he came to a decision and without a word to his dance partner, Kal stepped away from the dance floor and pushed past a couple of people to get to Jo. He stood in front of her and crossed his arms over his chest, creating a barrier over his heart.

**Don't you speak**

**A word about the past**

"Kal, I'm…I'm so sorry," Jo told him, swallowing and giving him a hopeful look.

"You're sorry?" he asked incredulously.

Part of him wanted to take her in his arms and never let her go again. What was it about this woman, this woman who had breezed into his life and somehow, in just a few brief encounters, had touched his heart.

**You'll need more than I'll ever give**

**I can't lie to you**

How was it that she had done it so fast? And then, just as suddenly, without explanation, disappeared again. It irked him and hurt more than he wanted to admit, even to himself. And then something in her hair caught his attention.

**I love you**

**My angel, my sin**

He recognized the object that caught the light because he had its mate back at his apartment…a gift from a dead friend. At the thought of Coop, Kal remembered why he couldn't get close to anyone. Everyone that got too close to him only got hurt. For her sake as well as his, he needed to end this…now.

**Everything I do**

**I do it for you.**

**I do it all for you.**

**Anything, anything for you**

"Kal, I…" Jo started.

He held up a hand and shook his head. Putting on a scowl, he told her, "Save it. I don't need or want your explanations. I've moved on. I suggest you do the same."

**Are we moving in the right direction?**

**What is fate if fate's immersed in shame?**

**A high price for the beauty of perfection**

**I go when all I want to do is stay**

"But…"

Tears filled Jo's eyes and he felt like a heel. But then, the image of Coop dying in his arms floated into his mind and he clenched his jaw again. Raising his head in determination, Kal just looked her in the eye. Then he turned his back and walked away, disappearing into the crowd. He made his way to a dark corner where he could see her and watched to see what she would do.

Lois stood there for what felt like forever before finally deciding that maybe he was right. He didn't need an explanation. And really, where could any of this have led except to a moment like this? Taking a shaky breath, she wiped away a stray tear and turned on her heel to leave…the club, the city, and the man who had changed her life.

**I do it all for you**

**Anything I do**

**I do it all for you**

* * * * CK/LL * * * *

**Deep underground in the Kawatche caves**

A voice echoed off of the stone walls. "The time for that part of your destiny is not yet, my son. Neither of you are ready for each other. I promise, you will be returned to each other," the male voice said.

There was a slight glow on one of the walls that held several symbols, but no one was around to see it. In a city, a couple of hours away, however, two young people got a sudden headache that quickly went away, taking with it details of their first meeting. It left feelings and bits and pieces of their encounters. They would meet again when something more powerful than they intervened, dropping one of them in the path of the other.


	5. Epilogue - Moments of Truth

**Close Encounters**

A/N: First of all, I want to apologize profusely for the long, long time it took to get this out to you. Way too much going on in my life, including my grandmother breaking her arm, work, computer issues, family issues, and much, much more. So I am sorry and I hope it will be worth the wait. I know that it's really long, 26 pages in MS Word.

So originally, I had the title for this epilogue to be "Moments of Recollection" but I changed it to fit more of the content. I hope it will be appropriately titled. There are several "flashbacks" in this part, though not as many as I had first thought of putting in here. Some reference specific episodes in the show but others are of my own creation. I hope it all came together as seamlessly as I was trying for. Enjoy! And please remember that writers thrive on feedback/reviews. After all the time and effort it took to put this epilogue together and finish this story, I really would love to hear what you think!

References to the following episodes: Crusade (4x1), Crimson (6x13),

Epilogue – Moments of Truth

So that is the _real_ story of how our young lovers met…and then forgot they had. Oh, they remember much of that summer secretly, but the details of the person they met and were so sure they loved stayed elusive. All memories of what the other looked like were fleeting and vague. Over the years, the AI of "Jor-El" allowed glimpses and feelings of déjà vu to filter through but never any details did it reveal... There were thoughtful gazes and stares, vague familiarity at odd moments and even early, inexplicable feelings of attraction that both fought ferociously.

At a time when the AI realized that something hadn't gone right with the training with Kal-El and that he would indeed need the help of humans to "fix" his son even though Kal-El said he understood his mission, Jor-El decided to give Kal-El's future mate the chance to help him…

_*Flashback to the time of Season 4, Episode 1: "Crusade"*_

_A voice from the Kawatche caves..._

"_It is time to begin your destiny, Kal-El, but you are not yet ready. I will send you to those who could help you. If you are to meet, I will need to help her find you."_

_Out on Route 31_

_ Lois Lane's middle name might as well have been "multitasker". At the moment, she was driving, drinking coffee and was on the phone with "information". "K-E-N-T, Kent, it's a farm. Do they even have addresses?" She took a swig of her coffee and then tut-tutted the person on the other end of the line. "Look! The last super genius I had on the line told me to turn right on Route 31. Now I'm totally lost."_

_ "Ma'am, I'm not sure who you spoke to but I've been the only one trying to help you that I know of. Now what do you see around you? Are there any landmarks, street signs, anything?"_

_ "Oh, about a billion stalks of corn," Lois quipped. At that moment, a bolt of lightning touched down a little too close and her phone went dead. She stared at it in disgust for a moment before rolling her eyes and tossing it aside. "That's just great," she muttered._

_She flipped down the sun visor and grabbed the cigarette she had stashed there. Her reflection stared back at her with accusing eyes. "Ok, If you smoke this, you're going to spend the rest of the night hating yourself," she told her reflection. Nodding once in determination, she dropped the cigarette into her open purse and looked to reach for her Nicorette gum. Lightning struck again, this time seemingly right in front of the vehicle and she swerved off the road into a large cornfield._

_As the vehicle finally came to a stop and Lois took a deep breath to calm her nerves, she glanced up at the sky. Her eyes narrowed as 3 streaks of lightning seemed to converge on the same point further ahead of her in the field. Those same hazel eyes flew open wide at the strange ball of…electricity? Lightning? She didn't know what it was but it was growing and coming towards her car. Her heart pounded in anticipation and horror as it seemingly exploded and sent a wave of energy her way. She ducked and cried out instinctively but then all was quiet and still._

_Looking up through the cornstalks piled on the hood of the car, she saw a burned area ahead of her and something was lying in the middle of it. Jumping out of the car, Lois' breathing turned to panting as she realized it was a man and he was lying on his side, facing away from her…and he was naked. "Oh my god!" Something about his form, though…something that felt like déjà vu came over her, although Lois knew she had never experienced anything like this before. She shook her head slightly and brought her attention back to the present._

_Lois moved towards the still figure. Then he stood up, still facing away from her, and for some reason, she felt drawn to him…like she should know this man. The feeling was so overwhelming that when she tried to speak, her voice came out weakly at first. "Are you-are you ok?" When he didn't answer, didn't even turn around, she moved cautiously forward. "What's your name?"_

_Then he spoke. "I don't know."_

_A shiver of awareness moved through Lois, but she ignored it. "I need to get you to a hospital."_

"_I am fine."_

_Lois snorted softly at that. "You've just been hit by lightning, you're stark naked, and you don't even remember your own name. You have a very loose definition of 'fine'." Then he turned around and her breathing hitched again. She swallowed and her eyes dropped lower of their own accord. She swallowed again and wrenched her eyes to the left. "Look at his face," she commanded herself. But when she looked back towards him again, her eyes refused to obey, raking up and down his beautiful form, pausing on his flawless chest. It was a full moment or two before she came back to her senses and remembered that he needed help._

"_I have a blanket in the trunk. Don't move," she told him, taking one last glance at him before turning for the car. The fact that he didn't seem to mind her staring at him just added to her nerves. "I'll be right back."_

_ "Wait," he called. She turned around and gave him a questioning look. "Who are you?" he asked._

_ She smiled as if it was his lucky day to have met her. "Lois, Lois Lane."_

_*End flashback*_

But Lois wasn't the only one who felt the connection. Even though Clark, or Kal-El, had no memories of who he was or what he was doing there, he felt pulled to the young woman with hazel eyes who was "not very comfortable with uncomfortable silences" and who had a nicotine habit. He didn't understand his relief when she said she had given up smoking, not when she first mentioned it and not at any point it came to mind in the future. He didn't remember everything of their first few minutes in the cornfield but from their time in the hospital forward, he remembered everything fairly clearly. When he saw her sitting at Chloe's grave, he felt the pull towards her so strongly that he almost crushed the flowers he had brought to put on the grave in an effort to keep his hands to himself.

Lois too felt the moment between them and couldn't stop her eyes from darting to his chest that was now covered with a red t-shirt. As their eyes met, she suddenly resented the pull this stranger had on her. She had been down that road before, attraction to someone she couldn't have for one reason or another, and she would _not_ end up with a broken heart again. So in an effort to keep him at arm's length and out of her heart, Lois resorted to sarcasm and jabs at Clark.

_*Flashback to "Crusade", Chloe's graveside*_

_ "Glad to see we've moved beyond the clothing optional stage of our relationship," she quipped, looking down at his body again. Was it her imagination or did he look disappointed at her? It was almost as if he knew that she was trying distance herself from him and he didn't like it. But Lois kept going. "I'm surprised you even remember who I am."_

_The meaning behind her statement was deeper than just the light bantering she was going for and Clark recognized it, and answered to it. "Chloe's cousin, Nicorette addiction, can't stand uncomfortable silences," he listed, moving closer to her._

_Lois was pleasantly surprised. "I guess this means that your synapses are all firing again."_

_Clark's hesitation in an explanation was what helped build the wall between them stronger. He was the one to put up a barrier this time. When she just stood staring at him, he was the one uncomfortable with the silence and decided it was time for a subject change. "Chloe was my best friend. You're not the only one who misses her," he told her._

_His words helped Lois fortify herself against his blue eyes and those butterflies that had fluttered in her stomach. She decided to add to that wall. "I'm just the only one doing something about it," she told him. Her words had the desired effect and the spark between them changed its nature._

_*End flashback*_

Clark called her on enjoying doing things on her own and she told him, with a raised chin, that her father raised her to be independent and self-sufficient. His sarcastic answer back established their relationship and put it squarely in the 'frenemy' territory. But even as they traded barbs at each other, they couldn't help the smiles and found that the bickering was just considered a safe way to interact. The fact that they only seemed to act that way with each other made the relationship just as special as if they were already acting like the soulmates they were.

Time went on and they got used to having each other around. Even though Lois knew Clark was too young to be the man she had met in Metropolis over that summer, her memories of Kal popped up at the oddest moments, and almost always when she was thinking of or around Clark. When she learned he was adopted, it birthed an idea that wouldn't go away and finally, she brought it up one evening while they were mucking out stalls in the barn.

_*Flashback*_

_ Clark was intently watching what he was doing with the pitchfork, mindful of where he dumped each forkful of dirty hay so that he didn't dump it over Shelby who was sitting outside the two stalls he and Lois were working on. Lois had sneezed a couple of times and glared occasionally at the retriever which made Clark hide a smile. She might be a tad allergic to Shelby but she was also sensitive to the hay dust that was stirred up by their work. But that didn't slow her down and Clark admired the way she didn't shirk chores or even complain about them, except to occasionally egg him on of course._

_ Lois had something on her mind and she couldn't seem to get rid of it, and that something had to do with the tall, dark farmboy working in the next stall. Her eyes would dart to his broad back now and then, and as he turned slightly so she got a view of his profile, she decided to bring up that something. After clearing her throat a couple of times, which he must have put down to her allergies, she was still drawing a blank in trying to find a way to bring up the subject subtly. Huffing after a minute or two, she finally decided to just go for it._

_ "So Smallville, you're adopted right?" she asked._

_ He paused in his work and looked so surprised for a minute that Lois had to bite back a grin. Yeah, this way might be more fun anyway. She always got the best answers from him using a direct approach._

_ Clark blinked a couple of times and then he smiled down at the hay. He had been aware that she had been trying to bring up something for the last few minutes, and he had waited for her to speak first, knowing she would when she was ready. His adoption had been one of the last topics he would have thought was on her mind, but with that opening question, she had once again turned his mind upside down. One thing he could say for Lois, one never had to wonder what was on her mind; she would willingly share when she was ready…whether you were ready for it or not._

_ "Yeah, what of it?" he asked lightly, as he resumed working._

_ "Well, it's just…Chloe told me a couple of weeks ago, I don't remember how it came up, and I was wondering…" she hesitated and Clark knew it was going to be big._

_ "Whatever it is you want to know, Lois, go ahead and ask. It's not like it's some big secret," he told her. Then he hid a small grimace. Well, the fact he was _adopted_ wasn't a big secret._

_ "Well, have you always known you were adopted?" Lois asked curiously._

_ Clark shrugged as he bent over and scooped up another load onto the pitchfork. "Yeah, my parents never hid that from me. If you want to know if I'm glad I know, I am. I don't think I would have appreciated finding that out when I got older."_

_ "Does it make a difference in how you feel about your parents? The Kents, I mean?" Lois asked, stopping and leaning on the handle of her own tool to look at him._

_ Clark stopped as well and mirrored her stance, looking a little puzzled. "What do you mean? They're my parents, always have been, the only parents I've ever known."_

_ Lois nodded. "Yeah, of course they are, and no one could ask for better parents but did it ever make you feel…I mean, didn't you ever…not that you'd ever want to hurt your mom or dad but did you ever…"_

_ Clark's eyebrows went up in question and he leaned his face closer, waiting for her to spit it out. "Did I ever what, Lois? Use the adoption card to get what I wanted? Throw it in my parents' faces that I wasn't really their son?"_

_ Scowling, her face reddened a little and she shook her head at herself. "No, that's not what I meant, although I'm sure that probably happened once or twice as well. What I meant was…" She huffed a minute and then suddenly went back to work, viciously stabbing at the hay. "Forget it. It's none of my business and you probably don't want to talk about it anyway."_

_ Clark stepped over to the low wooden wall that separated the two stalls they were in and after setting the pitchfork against it to the side, he rested his arms on the top. "No, Lois, I don't mind talking about it. What is it that you want to know?" he asked, wondering at this point just what was on her mind._

_ Huffing again, Lois stopped and blew her bangs out of her face. "Well, for one thing…have you ever tried to find your re—I mean birth parents? I mean, do you know anything about them? Are they alive or dead? Were they married and wildly in love or were your beginnings…well, less than romantic. Aren't you curious about where and who you came from?" she finally blurted out._

_ Clark stared at her for a minute as he thought about how to answer her questions. He couldn't exactly tell her the whole truth, but he didn't want to lie to her either. Lois had a nose for sniffing out lies and half-truths. She was easily angered and disappointed by the first but many times would let the latter slide if she thought it was important to the other person to leave it alone._

_ Picking up the pitchfork again he hefted it back and forth between his hands, not meeting her eyes. He shrugged again. "Of course I'm curious and I'd like to know more, but my parents…my birth parents are dead, Lois. I'll probably never get the answers to most of the questions I might ask."_

_ Lois paled a little and for the first time since Clark had known her, she seemed to not know what to say. She reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Oh, Clark, are you sure they're dead? Both of them?" she asked. When he nodded, she squeezed his shoulder lightly before she realized what she was doing and shoved her hands into her pockets. "I'm sorry, Smallville. That must be hard. I mean, the General and I don't exactly mesh most of the time and I think I've even mentioned once or twice that I couldn't believe we were related but I know we're family. I understand where I get a lot of my…" her mouth snapped closed. "I'm sorry. That probably isn't helping."_

_ She started to turn back to the hay but his hand on her shoulder stopped her. When Lois looked up at him, Clark was smiling. "It's ok, Lois. It was a long time ago and unlike you and your mom, I don't remember them at all. I have to accept the fact that there are some questions about myself that I will never get answers to."_

_ "But don't you want to find all the answers you can? I mean what if you have other relatives out there? Aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, siblings? What if you have a brother or a sister out there somewhere? Don't you want to look into it?" Lois asked, full of enthusiasm on the subject. She didn't admit even to herself the ulterior motive she had in wanting to find out if Clark had a brother out there. It would certainly explain why he reminded her of Kal. What if Kal had been his older brother?_

_ Clark frowned and shook his head. "No, Lois, I don't. I think that if I had other relatives out there somewhere they would have tried to find me by now or my parents would have left me in their care or a way to contact them."_

_ Lois eagerly shook her head. "Not necessarily, Clark, and if you had siblings, maybe no one was willing to adopt all of you. We could look into it, at least. I could help and I'm sure if we ask Chloe she would be more than happy to…"_

_ "Why can't you just drop this?" Clark barked out, his expression darkening. "I don't want to look into my past or my adoption or my blood relatives and I don't want you or Chloe or anyone else doing it either. So just drop it ok?" He turned his back on her and started stabbing at the hay, considering the subject closed._

_ Lois, however, was reluctant to let the subject die. "But, Smallville…"_

_ "No! It's my decision, Lois. So back off and leave it alone!" he snapped angrily. He threw the pitchfork down and stormed out of the barn._

_ A couple of hours later after dinner, Lois climbed the stairs to the loft and waved a white handkerchief. She paused at the top step and Clark stopped bouncing his tennis ball, his eyes darting to her face. His own face was carefully devoid of expression. Lois suppressed a sigh and moved a step closer._

_ "Hey, I'm waving a white flag here, Smallville. Can we call a truce, at least for the moment?"_

_ Clark grunted noncommittally and Lois did sigh. She came over to sit on the floor beside him instead of the couch behind him and he obligingly slid over a couple of inches so she could rest her back against the couch too. She sighed again and he juggled the ball between his hands, trying to decide if he should speak first or wait for her to do so._

_ After biting her bottom lip for a minute, Lois finally cleared her throat. "I'm sorry, Smallville. I didn't mean to be so…Lois-like," she said with a self-depreciating smile. "I know that I have a tendency to latch onto something and not let go; the General calls it something like a bulldog latching onto a pant leg."_

_ It was Clark's turn to sigh. "I'm sorry, too, Lois. I didn't mean to bite your head off. It's just…this is an issue I've been dealing with all my life. There are no easy answers and maybe no answers at all. I've come to accept that."_

_ "How will you know unless you try, Clark? I mean, there has to be a way to find out something. I mean it's not like you just fell out of the sky one day," Lois said._

_ Clark barked out a laugh at the irony of her statement but then covered it with a cough. Turning his head slightly, he bumped her with his shoulder. "Just let it go, Mad Dog," he teased. Then he turned a little serious as he added a soft, "Please."_

_ Lois looked into his eyes and swallowed. Giving him half a smile, she glanced down at her hands. "Ok, ok. It's your life and your past after all. I have no right to try to force you to find answers." Then she looked back up into his face. "But if you ever change your mind, Smallville, and you want my help…all you have to do is ask."_

_ He grinned and briefly squeezed her hand with his. "Thanks, Lois. You're a good friend."_

_ She grinned back. "Yeah, just don't tell anyone. No one would believe it coming from you anyway."_

_*End Flashback*_

The closest they ever came to stumbling onto the truth was during the time they secretly named "The Valentine's Day Fiasco". Lois had bought a lipstick made with red kryptonite and aphrodisiac oils and other ingredients and things got interesting. The red kryptonite somewhat thinned the barriers Jor-El had put up in her memories of that time long ago. Although not really remembering all the details even still, Lois' heart seemed to recognize what her mind did not.

_*Flashback to "Crimson", Kent Farm, Kitchen*_

_ Clark swallowed as Lois moved towards him, taking in her outfit from the knee-high, high-heeled black boots to the short skirt and the low cut blouse. How was it that a pair of boots could completely change the way he looked at Lois Lane, even momentarily? Stopping in front of him, Lois took his hand in hers and studied it for a moment. "How is that I've never noticed what big, strong hands you have, Smallville?"_

_ Chuckling a little nervously, Clark felt his hand start to sweat and he pulled it away abruptly, taking a small step back when he realized she wasn't joking around. "Lois, what's going on?" he asks. Next thing he knew he was holding something from her. "You made me a mixed CD," he stated, confused. His brain didn't even register her comment about White Snake doing power ballads before Lois was invading his personal space again._

_ "I will kill you if you tell anyone this, but there is nothing I love more than slowing dancing with some big, strong arms around me," Lois told him and suddenly he found himself holding her in his arms, and he was unnerved to find that the feeling was more familiar than he'd ever have thought possible. It was like…coming home. "Just like yours', Smallville."_

And then Lois laid those red-K enhanced lips on Clark and the small bit of exposure was enough to bring Kal out, though not as strongly as that summer.

_*FLASH to an empty office at the Daily Planet*_

_ Lois pulled back from Clark's kisses yet again. "Wait…wait a minute." She looked at him puzzled. "I _knew_ I had kissed you before." Her eyes narrowed and she smiled a little. "In the alley." She jabbed Clark and her grin widened as she made the connection. "You're Green Arrow."_

_ Clark smirks at her. "Hardly. I was just pretending to be so that you wouldn't know it was Oliver." He moved in to pick up where their lips had left off but Lois shoved him back again._

_ "Oliver? Oh my god. All those times he disappeared." She moved around him to look out the window at the city below and realized that she had misjudged yet another man she had allowed access to her heart. "What is my deal with emotionally unavailable weekend warriors?"_

Something inside of Lois recognized and was drawn to the self-confidence, bordering on cockiness, that Clark displayed while showing off his powers and in his boldness in claiming her lips and body before being distracted with the Lana and Lex engagement party. She never got a chance to wonder why it seemed familiar before she was hit by the antidote and her memories of everything she had done while under the red-K lipstick's influence were wiped out.

It was unnerving to realize that she had yet another night that she didn't remember exactly what she had done with a young man. It was her memories and nerves over waking up in Kal's bed that summer with no idea whether they had done anything more than _slept_ that had driven her to ask Clark to make sure she hadn't screwed up _their_ friendship.

_*FLASH to "Crimson", Loft of the Kent barn*_

_ "Well, I guess it's best that neither of us remembers," Lois said, sitting on the couch in front of Clark, her legs stretched out in front of her. "I mean, I can't even really picture the two of us…uh…" She noticed that he was waiting for her to continue and she suddenly had to ask. Unable to meet his eyes, Lois let her own slide down towards her shoes. "You don't think…that we…" but she just couldn't finish the sentence._

_Her hazel eyes jumped to his face and he just grinned at her, raising his eyebrows and obviously amused. "Think that we what?" he asked, enjoying her discomfort._

_Lois huffed, rolled her eyes and pressed her lips together. Taking a deep breath, she jumped up to stand in front of him. "You know…that we…"_

_He just grinned bigger and chuckled, even as Clark felt his own cheeks heat up slightly. He leaned towards her just a little more. When she didn't seem to be joking and just raised her eyebrows and shrugged, Clark decided to let her off the hook. "No, Lois." She sighed and closed her eyes in relief and he couldn't help adding, "I think I would have remembered."_

_Lois just studied him hard for a minute before nodding once. "Yeah…course you would. Highlight of your life."_

_But Clark couldn't let it go at that. He just couldn't allow this perfect opportunity to bust her chops pass by altogether. So, just as she reached the loft stairs he called back to her. "Although, I did find something." As she froze and looked back at him nervously, he moved over to the desk and opened a drawer, pulling out the gift she had given him and he had not looked at twice. "I think you made it for me." He handed her the mixed CD._

_Watching her turn it over and redden a little, Clark felt a small grin fill his face again. He just waited for her comment, readying a comeback of his own. But then she swallowed and her eyes filled with an emotion that he couldn't name, but it was partly shock. "White Snake." Her blush deepened. "Wow. I must've really liked you," she said without a hint of amusement. As her eyes floated up to his, suddenly, Clark didn't find it funny anymore._

_*End Flashback*_

There were long periods when that time in their lives never came up at all, but others…there were other times that it came back to them just as emotion filled as if it had just happened. For Lois, it came up whenever she heard from Wes Keenan via email or telephone and the last time she saw him before he died. It came up sometimes when she would come up to the loft at night to talk to Clark and his silhouette would be outlined as he looked off into the distance. The first time she saw him in the long, black leather jacket. Odd moments and wrong times, but she would quickly dismiss it and it got easier to let go, though it did seem to reinforce some emotional walls she had put in place. Over time, she forced herself to let go of the mysterious man she met in Metropolis and even learned to be able to enjoy listening to White Snake again. It helped that aggravating Clark with her love of hair bands and metal music was a happy side effect of getting over Kal.

_*Flashback to "Dominion", Season 10*_

_**Lois and Clark's new apartment, Metropolis**_

_ Lois adjusted her mother's blue bird near the window just as Clark came in carrying another box. "Hey, Lois, where can I put this box?"_

_ "Well, I don't think that requires any super sleuthing. It does say, 'living room'," she told him as she pointed to her handwriting._

_ "No, I can decipher your scrawl; I'm just thinking it was mislabeled," he told her with a questioning look. He tilted the box towards her and smiled._

_ Lois smirked back as she grabbed the top object and yanked it out. Turning it to face Clark, she said, "If you're talking about my White Snake throw pillow, loving everything about me includes the sentimental." She slugged him with the pillow as she moved around him to place the pillow in the perfect spot…on the couch. Feeling the need to explain, she added, "I made this from my 8__th__ grade concert t-shirt."_

_ After putting it smack dab in the middle of the couch, she turned back to find him looking amused and horrified at the same time. "And I talked to Oliver, and he told me how smoothly he and Chloe fused their hero green and geek chic."_

_ Deciding there were other battles to be fought and won, Clark decided to let her have this one. "Don't worry, my 'for better or for worse' will include your love of hair metal," he told her reluctantly. She narrowed her eyes at him to let him know she didn't find his joke humorous. He just smiled in return before changing the subject._

_**Same place, Kent apartment, after Oliver and Clark come back from the Phantom Zone**_

_ Lois gave a forced little laugh as she recounted bits and pieces of the last 3 weeks, waiting for any word of Oliver or Clark. She couldn't hide how worried and heartbroken she had been at the thought that she might never see him again. She glanced at something behind Clark. "I, uh, brought the pillow with me for downtime because…well, it reminds me of you now. Silly, huh?"_

_*End flashback*_

For Clark, every time he thought of or came into contact with red kryptonite, he wondered how clear his memories were of that time. When Jonathan started having heart problems, the guilt over how his actions that summer affected others, including the mysterious woman he had met in Metropolis would hit him. He thought of her when he had put away the silver hair comb that Coop had given him. And when he couldn't seem to commit to Lana, even when they seemed to have a clear path, a feisty brunette flitted through his consciousness before he forced it back again. It was the guilt that he always seemed to hurt those he loved that kept him from pursuing his feelings for or a relationship with Lois for a long time. Because he knew, deep down, that she was the one for him, the end of any searching for someone who could handle the truth about him and all the baggage that came with it.

_*Flashback to "Finale", the day of the Lane/Kent wedding…the first one*_

_**Clark and Lois's apartment, Metropolis**_

_ Clark forced himself to the door of their apartment, his heart shattering into a million pieces at what he was going to have to do. He tried to tell himself that Lois had been right. She had been the one to see what he hadn't. He tried to console himself with the fact that she would be ok because she had accepted what had to be before he had so she was more prepared for what was coming than he had been, though he should have known that with Lois Lane, nothing came easy…not loving her, not marrying her…and not letting her go._

_ He had to do this…before he lost his nerve. "Lois," he called through the door. He waited about a nanosecond and when he didn't get a response right away, he decided to barge through the door. "Lois."_

_ Just as Clark started pushing the door open, he found an opposing force on the other side, shoving it closed again. "Careful there, Prince Charming. It's bad luck to sneak a peek at the bride before you get to the altar," she called to him from inside the apartment. "I know that technically you saw me this morning but…the rules only apply when the wedding is officially on."_

_ His heart flipped over in his chest and then plummeted to his stomach. "On?!" No, not now. He had waited for her to come to her senses and change her mind _to_ marry him and _now_ she changed it, just when he had come to the conclusion that she was right?!_

_ Shifting nervously, Clark moved closer to the door, stuttering. "Lois, I-I thought you called off the wedding."_

_ Lois huffed a little nervous laugh. "Don't have a cow, farmboy…but I read your vows."_

_ 'No, this was NOT happening!' Clark thought, his heart back up in his throat. He started to pace in the hall._

_ "And I know that that is against the rules, but a little birdie bridesmaid gave it to me, and…" He heard her sigh. "They were beautiful, and I realized that I was a fool because I was…well, what we have is a gift, and I was trying to return it…when we're a perfect fit."_

_ Clark swallowed, his mind spinning. Only Lois Lane could make him so sure they should be together one minute, completely convinced that they shouldn't be the next, and then turn that decision right back around all over again. So which was the right path?_

_ "So here's my vows. Now we're even." Her voice came from right up against the door and a piece of paper slid out from under it._

_ Clark stood there looking at them for what felt like a long time but was really only a moment before bending down and picking them up. He didn't let himself look at them, trying to gather his courage again. He moved to stand right next to the door. "Lois, sometimes you can see things that I can't," he paused, not wanting to continue. He blinked a couple of times. "And you…you walked away I thought because you couldn't bring yourself to be the one to stand in the way of my destiny," he added, unable to completely come right out and say it._

_ Before he could continue, she jumped to defend herself. "Well, here's the thing about that…I can be loud, and at times I'm a little bossy. So someone might wonder why a person of your godlike caliber would be with a woman who is so imperfect." She paused and his heart broke a little at her self-criticism. But then she continued. "Well, don't take this the wrong way but you come with some baggage of your own."_

_ He half rolled his eyes before they closed against the truth of her words and he hung his head, unable to come up with a response to that. Opening his eyes, he clenched his jaw and forced himself not to interrupt. "And it's made me a better person. Just like being with me will make you a greater man…and a super hero…I hope."_

_ Clark had to say it. He had to ask. "Lois, what if you were right? With your family not being here and the doubts you had yesterday…maybe the stars aren't aligned."_

_ His super hearing picked up her soft snort. "Well, believe me, it's a buzz kill that the Chief of Staff whisked daddy away to some hush-hush meeting, but…I'm a big girl. I can walk myself down the aisle." Clark's heart melted at the obvious pain in her tone. "As my mom always said, 'The ones you love are always with you.'" She laughed a little and he moved back to the door. "And right now, my dad would be telling me that I should have laid out all my clothes the night before so that I wouldn't be whirling around like a dervish…and mom…she's reminding me that I need to breathe and take in every moment so that I can remember them forever." He felt her move closer to the door again. And then she asked it…the question he had been avoiding thinking about. "What would your dad say, Clark?"_

_ His mouth opened and closed a few times before he was able to reply and he shuffled against the doorframe. "Not sure he would say anything, Lois." A small smile formed on his face as he thought back on the man that had raised him. "That's just kinda the way it was with my dad, you know? I always knew exactly what he was thinking."_

_ A moment or two passed before she said anything again, but when she did, it made his heart squeeze again. "Clark, what did you mean about the stars not aligning?" she asked as if she was afraid she might already know the answer._

_ Clark glanced down as he tried to form an answer and her vows caught his attention. Instead of answering, he found himself reading them...the red ink corrections making him smile at how 'Lois-like' it was. When he was done, he lowered the paper, lost in the memories of their relationship and thoughts of how stupid he would be to let her go…to walk away from the best thing that had ever happened to him. Her voice snapped him out of his stupor._

_ "Clark?" she called, a touch of panic in her voice. He turned to face the door and heard her sharp intake of breath when he didn't answer right away._

_ Placing his hand against the door, he used his imagination rather than his x-ray vision to see her pressed to the other side of it. "I'm here," he told her softly. He heard her release her breath in relief and he wished he could hold her, grateful he hadn't told her how close he had been to ruining it all. "I'll see you at the chapel," he told her._

_ But Lois must have guessed what he had meant by his earlier words because there were tears in her voice as she answered him. "Yeah…see you there."_

_*End flashback*_

Eventually, all thoughts of "Jo" and "Kal" were covered over with thoughts of "Smallville" and "Lois" and our two love birds grew closer. It wouldn't be until many years later, after the learning of other secrets and other people floating in and out of their lives…after a complete commitment that they would learn the truth…

**Kent Farm, A couple of years after the "Finale"**

Lois sighed as she looked at the pile of boxes that was growing in the living room of the Kent farm. When she glanced over and caught the expression on her mother-in-law's face, she forced a bright smile. "Have I thanked you yet for allowing us to move all our junk in here until we can get moved into the new house, Mom?"

Giving a small smile back, Martha Kent nodded. "Several times, Lois, and I'm happy to have you both, you know that. You're welcome to stay as long as you need." She couldn't help but glance a little hesitantly at the boxes that were stacked all over her home. "This is your home as much as it is mine. It's why I had signed the deed over to you two when you got married."

Lois followed her gaze. "I know it looks like a lot, but Smallville and I will have this all cleared away in no time…as soon as we figure out what to do with it all." She sighed before adding, "I just can't believe that I screwed up with the landlord of the apartment. I could have sworn I gave him that signed lease and check for another two months."

"It's no wonder you forgot, Lois, with everything the two of you have had going on lately. Superman's been busy, the League has been busy and I've noticed that the headlines on the front page of the _Planet_ have had yours and Clark's bylines almost daily lately. It's amazing that you're still standing. Maybe some time here on the farm will be good for the two of you," Martha suggested. The timer on the oven dinged and she moved to check on the casserole she had cooking for their dinner.

"I just wish it didn't feel like we were invading your space. I mean, you probably are just now getting used to the peace and quiet around here after retiring from the Senate last year and here come your son and daughter-in-law bringing chaos," Lois apologized, sniffing the air appreciatively. Her stomach rumbled at the thought of Martha Kent cooking.

"Not to mention a whole lot of junk," Clark added from behind an armload of boxes as he entered the back door. "I'm just glad we were able to move the closing of the house closer. At least we won't have to be here taking up space for more than a couple of weeks." He lowered them to the floor and looked to make sure there was a clear path through all the disorder. "Lois, how did we have all this stuff crammed into that little apartment? I've been bringing things out here to the farm for two days, in between work and having to take care of my _other_ work, and there's still our bed and the other pieces of furniture to take the storage facility you rented."

Lois grinned sheepishly and let out a nervous laugh. "Amazing huh? Who would've thought?"

Her tone caught his attention and Clark's penetrating blue gaze shot to her face. "Lois?" he asked in a tone that reminded her a lot of Ricky Ricardo's when he was questioning Lucy.

"Well…" Lois tried for a lightly flirtatious tone. "You see, Smallville, when we moved into that apartment and had temporarily put the farm on the market, and your stuff and your parents' stuff and my stuff were all…" she searched for the right word. She huffed a little in exasperation at herself. Lois Lane wrote for a living for Pete's sake. "discombobulated," she settled on.

Clark's expression turned amused. "'Discombobulated?'" he teased.

She raised her eyebrows at him, daring him to comment on it. "Yes! I mean, I had to rush to get it all sorted and some stuff got mixed up and then you and Ollie were gone off to the Phantom Zone and I had to put that apartment in order all by myself and…"

Recognizing that she was stalling for time, Clark called her out. "Lois."

"I rented the storage facility a long time ago, Smallville," she said, blurting out her confession. At his confused expression, she sighed. "I've had some stuff stored there since I first went to Metropolis…back when I went to Met U. Some of this was there and I've been bringing it out here hoping you wouldn't notice so I could go through it."

Clark hung his head and laughed, shaking his head. "You mean to tell me that we have to sort this junk to figure out which stuff you should even keep?"

Stalking over to one particularly large box that caught her attention, she waved in the direction of his handwriting on the side of it. "Don't you me which stuff _we_ should keep, Smallville?" she asked. When his eyes widened at the label on the side of the box she was pointing to, she gave him a self-satisfied smirk.

"Where did you get _that_ box?" Clark asked as he moved to stand beside it protectively.

Shrugging, Lois eyed it, curiosity filling her face. "It was mixed in with a bunch of other boxes that were sitting in the apartment while you were gone to the Phantom Zone. Why? What you got in there, Smallville?"

He bit back a groan at the openly curious tone in her words. Now, he'd have to be really careful. Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Clark shrugged nonchalantly. "Nothing really. Just a bunch of stupid memorabilia that wouldn't mean much to anyone except me. I don't even remember what's really in that box. I'll probably end up throwing it in the barn, or the attic, or maybe even out altogether."

Lois wasn't fooled by his act. "Good, then you won't mind if I look to see what all is in that box."

She reached around him for it but he intervened and shoved it further into the corner of the room. At her raised eyebrow, he smiled guiltily. "Nothing that can't wait until later, Lo. Dinner's almost ready and we don't want to start unpacking right now. Right, mom?" he looked to his mother with a pleading expression and she bit back a smile.

"Right. We'll be ready to eat as soon as the table is set and the drinks poured. You two can sort through all this later," Martha said, turning to the counter to hide her amusement. There were times when Lois and Clark were at the farm that they seemed to revert back somewhat to the way their relationship started. It made her nostalgic and she blinked at the thought of the passage of time.

**Late that night/Early the next morning…**

Lois stifled a yawn and blinked a couple of times as she staggered to the stairs. Trying to be as quiet as possible, she skipped the stair that creaked and listened for a moment half way down. Not hearing anything and not wanting to wake Martha, she whispered softly into the dark. "Smallville? You down there?"

The only answer was the hum of the refrigerator and she sighed as she made her way to the bottom of the steps and towards the left over pie that was calling to her. Clark must be out on Superman business. Her mouth was watering and she could almost taste the pie when an excruciating pain slammed into her toes on her right foot. She let out a cry before slapping her hand to her mouth, covering several choice words. Leaning up against the island, she cradled her sore toes with the other hand and glared down at the box that had obviously moved into her way.

Several minutes passed and the pain subsided to a throbbing ache and Lois gingerly made her way towards her original destination. After fishing out a fork and transferring a slice of the blueberry pie onto a small plate, she pulled a glass out of the cabinet and set it on the counter. Lois grunted and scrunched her eyes shut at the blinding light from the refrigerator as she blindly reached for the milk.

Lois was in the middle of filling the glass when a hushed voice startled her. "Lois, what are you doing?"

She was so startled that she dropped the glass container, and there would have been glass shards all over the place in addition to the milk that spilled if it weren't for the super-fast reflexes of her husband. "Damn it, Smallville! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" she stage-whispered, her heart pounding furiously.

Clark finished filling her glass and placed the milk container back in the refrigerator before turning to his wife and pulling her into the circle of his arms. She barely made out the whites of his teeth as he flashed a grin and her eyes narrowed at him. "Sorry," he said without a hint of remorse in his tone. His eyes darted to the pie and then back to her, trying to decipher how grouchy she was.

"Don't even _think_ about it," she growled at him, snatching up the plate and glass and hobbling over to the island. Lois dropped onto one of the stools.

Clark paused in the middle of getting down a plate as he looked at his wife in concern. "Lo, you're limping. You ok?"

Talking around a big mouthful of pie, Lois nodded. "Yeah, just stubbed my toes on that box over there," she told him, jabbing in the direction of said box with her fork. "I thought we were careful to keep the pathways clear."

Grabbing his own plate and glass, Clark dropped onto the stool next to her. "I thought so too but obviously you're marching down your own path again," he teased. At her glare, he hid another smile and walked over to the box. "I'll move it." Picking it up, his keen eyesight caught her scrawl on the top. "Lo, what's in this box? I can't make out what it says and it's your handwriting."

Switching on the light over the stove and blinking a couple of times, Lois moved to see what he was talking about. Her face softened for a second before she cleared her throat and took the box from him. "Nothing for you to worry about. Just some old junk of mine. I'll go through it later and probably pitch most of it."

His super senses picking up on the way her heart rate accelerated, Clark reached to take the box back, giving her a knowing grin. "Well, in that case, you won't mind if I look and see what's in it then."

Snatching the box out of his reach unless he really tried, Lois narrowed her eyes at him. "As a matter of fact, I do mind. It's personal." Seeing the look in his eyes, she added, "And _no_ cheating with the x-ray vision!"

He chuckled and teasingly reached again for the box. "Oh, come on, Lois. I thought we didn't keep secrets from each other anymore."

Dodging his hands, she couldn't help smiling at their play until he finished his thought. "Oh ho! You want to go there, Mr. Kent! Then I think it's only fair that you let me see what's in that big box over in the corner," she said with a darting glance at the box he had rushed to keep from her earlier.

His eyes narrowed at that and he pursed his lips. She gave him a cocky grin, knowing she was bluffing, so his answer to her challenge surprised her. "Alright, Lane, I'll show you my hand if you show me yours," he told her, folding his arms over his chest.

Now it was Lois' turn to narrow her eyes at him. She waited a heartbeat before squaring her shoulders and coming to a decision. "Alright, Smallville, I'll see your challenge. You wanna do this now or in the morning?"

"It's late…or early, depending on how you look at it. We don't have to work, but the rooster will be crowing sooner than you think and it's been a long couple of days moving everything in," Clark said softly, looking at the clock. "Maybe we should wait until the morning."

"What's the matter, Smallville? Hoping I'll forget all about this after some sleep? Are you so afraid for me to know what's in that box?" Lois dared him, setting the box down and mirroring his stance.

He waited a beat and then snorted softly. "Let's do it. We each open our own box and go through the contents…together," Clark offered.

"Explaining each item in the box to the satisfaction of the other party?" Lois countered.

Clark nodded once in answer and raised an eyebrow, waiting for her decision. Lois bit her bottom lip as she looked down at the box at her feet and then over at the one in the corner. Tilting her head at her husband, she added to the rules. "But we each get a free pass on one item that we don't have to explain."

"Deal," he said, spitting into his hand and stretching it out to her. Lois bit back a grin and did the same before shaking his hand to seal the deal.

Never ones to do anything half-way, Lois made some coffee while Clark took the two boxes into the living room and then popped a bag of popcorn in the microwave. Once they were both settled on the couch, their respective boxes in front of them, they each took a breath to relax inexplicable nerves in the soft glow of the lamplight.

Taking a deep breath, Lois nudged him and nodded towards his box. "You have the bigger box. That means more stuff. You should go first."

Clark shook his head. "Not necessarily. Could just be bigger stuff. We should open them together."

Rolling her eyes, Lois yanked at the tape holding the top of her box closed. "Oh for crying out loud…" she muttered. "There. It's open," she declared, pulling back the flaps.

Clark opened his box and looked down inside…and smiled at the object lying on top. "I'll go first." He pulled out his old football helmet. "Need an explanation for this one?"

"Hardy-har-har. No, and that's cheating."

"It's not cheating, Lois. It was the first item in the box!" he said with a grin. "Your turn."

Huffing a little, she looked over the side of the box and chuckled, pulling out the object on top. It was a Green Arrow action figure still in the original packaging. Holding it up, she grinned at him. "Ollie sent this to me when it first came out. He said it was cooler than the Superman action figure because it came with a pair of shades for the buyer and he has a bow and arrow while Superman's didn't come with anything."

Clark rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. Oliver didn't let me hear the end of that for a month." Then he grinned as he remembered why Oliver finally _had _let it go. "Until the Batman action figure came out, complete with the cool utility belt and you could buy the Bat mobile separately."

They laughed together and continued, swapping stories over objects that defined their pasts, both separate and together. There were groans and blushes and laughing and near tears. They were nearly to the bottom of the boxes and it was Lois' turn. She reached in and pulled out two objects at once. Holding up the one in her right hand, she turned widened eyes on Clark.

"I had no idea I still had this, Smallville! After all the chaos and trouble it caused…I'll put it out with the trash later today," she told him, holding up the silver tube.

He took it from her and smiled. "I don't know if that's the best idea. I know you don't really remember any of what happened but it wasn't _all_ bad. Besides, maybe we should get Emil or Dr. Kline to do some tests on it…" Clark's smile turned flirtatious. "And it was a good color on you."

Lois blushed and rolled her eyes but she cleared her throat and put the red kryptonite lipstick aside. Holding up the other object, she waved it at him. "And what am _I_ doing with this? I thought I made this for you."

Taking the jewel case from her, Clark laughed softly. He studied the cover. "I can't believe you still have this. I thought you would have thrown it out the day I gave it back to you." A thought struck him. "You know, I never got a chance to listen to it. Maybe we should put it on."

Lois snatched it back. "I don't know why I kept it either. I don't even know what songs I put on here without looking, but something told me to keep it." She dropped it lightly on the coffee table. "But I don't want to wake your mom so we can listen to it later."

Shrugging, Clark decided to let it go and reached in without looking for the next item in his box. What he pulled out made him swallow hard. It was a key…a key he had once given to a friend. He held it in the palm of his hand and looked down at it for a long minute.

"Hey, you ok?" Lois asked, placing her hand on his forearm.

He shook his head slightly as he came back to the present. "Yeah, but I think I want to pass on this one," he told her with a brief smile.

Lois frowned at the key as he put it on the table next to the CD but didn't comment. Instead, she took her turn and pulled out a photo frame. Looking at it for a minute, tears formed in her eyes. She sniffed a couple of times before showing it to Clark. "It's a picture of me and Chloe and…and my friend Wes Keenan." At his puzzled expression, she reminded him of who Wes had been. "You remember Wes. He was the Special Forces soldier who Lex tried to turn into a super soldier and he tried to kill me before…before you stopped him."

Clark's expression cleared and then filled with regret and sorrow for Lois and her friend. "Yeah, I remember. I'm sorry I never got to really meet him." He took the picture and studied it for a minute, something niggling at the corner of his mind. "When was this taken? It looks like you have dark hair or is that just a trick of the lighting."

Taking it back from him, Lois shook her head as she stared at the three of them. "No, it was dark then. This was taken the summer when dad came to Metropolis for some special assignment. It was my birthday and Wes was stationed there and he and Chloe and I spent the day at the zoo together."

"When was this? It couldn't have been too long before you and I met. You don't look that much different than when I met you…other than the hair," he asked, the feeling at the back of his mind getting stronger.

"It was the year I turned 17 so it wasn't quite a year and a half or so before, I guess." Lois let the memories wash over her and she couldn't believe the passage of time and how strong the emotions were that came back with the memories, even if she couldn't really name them. "That was…a weird summer to say the least, starting with that day."

"Was it a bad birthday?" Clark asked, placing a hand on her thigh and squeezing gently.

"Not _bad_, per se. The General had important things to do, as usual, but he gave me money to spend the day doing pretty much whatever we wanted. Chloe got a bad headache after the zoo and went home but Wes took me out for the evening and we stayed out pretty late." She looked at Wes' face in the photo and she almost seemed to forget where she was. "I was still smoking back then. He and Chloe were always begging me to quit," she murmured.

Snapping back to the present, Lois placed the photo aside. "I finally was able to quit, as you know, but it took more willpower than I ever thought it would."

Clark gave her a small grin. "Yeah, I remember. Nicotine addiction. Not comfortable with uncomfortable silences."

She grinned back and looked into his eyes lovingly. "Ok, farmboy, your turn," she nudged, using a nickname he hadn't heard in ages.

Still looking into her eyes, he pulled out a small object and glanced at it before quickly shoving his hand behind his back. "You know what? I think it's time we called it a night. I mean, we really should get some sleep and we can finish this…"

"Nuh uh uh, Smallville! We are going to finish this! Now what's in that hand?" she asked, trying to look behind him.

Clark pulled his hand back around to sit on it with the object underneath him. "In that case, I want to pass on that one."

"No way! You get _one_ free pass and you already used it on the key! Now ante up!"

"Lois," he half groaned, half pleaded.

"Come on, Clark! We've already been through enough embarrassing stuff, now let's see it!" Lois said, getting excited and curious about his nervousness.

Sighing, Clark closed his eyes and then rolled them towards the ceiling as he pulled it out. "Ok, it's a comb, alright? I'm not even entirely sure why…"his words trailed off at his wife's face. Lois had gone completely still and had paled considerably. "Lo? You ok? What is it?"

Her mouth moved a couple of times, her eyes never leaving the object in his hand. "Wh-where did you get that?" she whispered.

Puzzled, Clark glanced down at it and shrugged. "Honestly? It's a little fuzzy. I think a friend of mine gave it to me the summer I had run away from home. I don't know why I held onto it all this time, but it's obviously real silver. I polished it once or twice and it cleans up beautifully." Lois still didn't move and he held it to her, trying to figure out what was going on with her. "You can have it if you want."

Lois hesitantly reached towards it before snatching her hand back as if the comb would burn her. Tears filled her eyes again, one spilling over to slide down her cheek unheeded. She dove into her box and pulled out her closed fist, clutching something to her chest. "When I was younger, about mid-teens or so…the General gave me a present for my birthday. They once belonged to my mother, who had gotten them from her grandmother. I was so careless with them! I lost one of them and…"

Unable to finish her sentence, her mouth having gone dry, Lois slowly opened her hand to reveal an identical hair comb to the one in Clark's hands. His puzzled expression turned to shock and then confusion. "Lois, I don't understand…"

Looking up at him, she stared into his blue eyes. "Clark. Where. Did. You. Get. That. Comb?"

He swallowed, the alarm bells clanging in his head. "An old homeless man that befriended me in Metropolis gave it to me before he died. He was killed in a mugging," he whispered.

Lois held her breath, something telling her to go deeper on this. Just as she started to say something, however, Clark winced and ducked his head, as if hearing something that was too loud, but she didn't hear anything. He squeezed his eyes shut and dropped his head into his hands, his fingers moving to plug his ears. Concerned, Lois reached up and touched his face.

"Clark?! What is it? What's wrong?"

After a second, he let out a breath and paused before shaking his head and sitting up straight. His eyes shot to hers and for some reason, Lois' heart started to pound. "Clark?"

"Lois, did you get everything you wanted for your birthday that year?" Clark asked her in a voice barely above a whisper.

Her hazel eyes holding his blue ones, Lois didn't pretend not to understand which birthday he was asking about. "I didn't really want much. I met this guy at the club that Wes took me to. I told him it was my birthday…"

"And he apologized for not having a present for you, didn't he?" Clark said, leaning closer. Lois swallowed and nodded just barely. "Lois, have you ever heard of a future wish?" he whispered, not blinking.

Licking her lips, Lois's gaze dropped to Clark's before jumping back to his eyes. "Just once. That guy…he gave me one. He told me to…"

"Close your eyes," they said together. Then Clark picked continued when she had closed them. "Think about all the things you might wish for in the future, anything at all…cars, money, trips…love."

Lois' mouth curved into a disbelieving smile as his lips met hers. The kiss was gentle but firm, chaste but made her heart race…and over far more quickly than she would have liked. She kept her eyes closed even as he pulled back, her fingertips moving up to her tingling lips.

"Kal," she breathed.

"Jo," she felt against her lips as he kissed her fully.

Clark's lips moved over hers and he pulled her onto his lap, her legs straddling him. His arms wrapped around her waist and roamed up and down her back, up into her hair and down to clutch her butt. Lois pressed herself into her husband, rocking against him and unable to get close enough. Her hands gripped at his hair, raked down his back, back over his shoulders and down his flawless chest.

As the thought of his chest penetrated the haze, Lois lurched back. "Clark! It was you?! But how? I mean, you had that scar…and the apartment…the club…"

"I know! I can't believe it! All these years, I've never been able to remember…and now…god! I can't believe I found you! You're real! And you're mine!" Clark said, looking into his wife's eyes.

For the next couple of hours, the excitement of finding out the truth of how they met flooded over them and they talked in half sentences and explanations, answering questions and asking others.

"Now I know why I made that CD for you…"

"I can't believe I didn't remember and figure it out sooner!"

"Your parents must have been worried sick about you."

"I should have put it together with the hair metal, especially the White Snake."

It was just around dawn and the first crow of the rooster that they slowed down. Clark held his wife to his chest and drew his fingertips lazily up and down her back. "I'm so sorry that I hurt you that night by walking away. I know I did but I felt like I _had_ to walk away before I _really_ hurt you."

"Hmm," Lois hummed. "I was leaving anyway. I just _had_ to find you to try to say goodbye. The General had gotten new orders and we shipped out two days later." She pulled back just enough to look up into his face. "Clark, whatever happened to…what was his name? Coop?"

Clark swallowed and looked down at her. "Franklin Cooper. He was mugged in an alley not far from the club late one night not long before that last time I saw you. I interrupted it and one of the kids ended up stabbing him. He died in my arms without a friend in the world, Lois." His voice broke on that last sentence and she reached up and cupped his face.

"He had you, Clark. He really appreciated your friendship, short as it was," she reassured him with a small smile. She reached up and kissed him softly before pulling back and clearing her throat. Her eyes dropped down to their clasped hands and she gathered up the courage to ask. "One thing I don't remember…" She paused, trying to finish the question.

"Yes?"

"Clark, did you and I…we didn't…that first night at your apartment, you and I didn't…you know…did we?" she finally got out.

Lois felt his chest vibrate and she slapped it lightly, knowing he was laughing at her which made him chuckle all the harder. "Lois, we've been married and '_you knowing'_ for a while now. You can't even bring yourself to say it?" he teased.

Pulling back, she rushed to defend herself. "This is different, Smallville! We were so young! I had been drinking, you were on red-k and…oh just forget it. I guess it doesn't matter. I just hate not knowing and I can't remember…"

Clark pulled her back into his arms and silenced her with his lips. After a long kiss, he pulled back and brushed back her hair. "No, Jo, we didn't make love that night. You fell asleep in my arms after talking most of the night," he told her softly.

She sighed and laid her head back on his chest. "I'm glad. I mean, I just wanted to know that I remembered our first time together, you know? It was perfect after all. So romantic."

Clearing his throat, Clark's conscience forced him to correct his wife. "Well, technically you slept with me before I slept with you," he reminded her. When she pulled back with a questioning look, he grinned. "In the future, remember?"

She rolled her eyes in exasperation. "You mean the future that never happened?" Then she squinted and took a deep breath. "I hate time travel. I don't know if that counts or not. I don't remember it and you weren't you…oh forget it."

They were quiet for a few minutes and then Clark thought of something else he wanted to know. "So, why don't you like hyenas?" he asked.

It took Lois a minute to catch up but then she answered after swallowing. "Daddy was stationed in Africa once and I saw a pack of hyenas take off with this woman's baby. He wasn't even 4 months old. They never found him. I still heard those bone chilling cackles for weeks afterwards in my nightmares." She shivered at the memory and he placed a kiss on the top of her head, wrapping his arms around her tighter.

"Clark?"

"Yeah?"

"Where did you get that scar? What happened to it?"

Lois sat back as she waited for Clark to answer, wanting to see his face. "Jor-El wanted to get my attention. Looking back, I don't think either of us handled each other well. I was so focused on avoiding being who and what I was, and Jor-El was just as determined to make me heel and do as he wanted me to do his way. It went away after I destroyed the red kryptonite ring and decided to come home with dad."

Satisfied with that answer for now, Lois moved back into his arms and they stretched out the length of the couch, just lost in their own thoughts for the moment. Lois was tracing lazy circles on Clark's arm and suddenly giggled.

"What?" he asked with a smile.

"Nothing. Just remembering how you deduced that I wasn't 60 years old or had a mustache," Lois told him. They laughed together softly and she pulled back to look up at him. "You know, you're pretty hot on that red kryptonite. You wouldn't believe how attracted to Kal I was," she flirted.

His heat vision flashed in his blue eyes momentarily before darkening with desire and a bit of mischief. "You know, I don't need red kryptonite to drop my inhibitions."

Lois raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?"

He tilted his head down to place his forehead against hers. "Yeah. I just needed a loud, brassy brunette to do that. What do you say we go upstairs and get in touch with my rebellious side?" he suggested, wiggling his eyebrows at her and squeezing her buttocks again.

Lois squeaked and giggled, capturing his lips. "You know, I just realized that I was 17 when I had my first up close alien encounter. I kinda liked it the first time around."

Standing up, he gathered her in his arms and moved towards the stairs. "Well, in the interests of interplanetary peace negotiations, I suggest another close encounter, this time definitely without clothes," Clark told her, nodding his head vigorously.

She gasped, reddened, and then threw her arms tighter around his neck, surrendering herself over to her husband. "Well, then take me to your leader and bring on the probes!" she declared, laughing.


End file.
